Sheriff testifies in Modesto bail bondsman’s extortion trial

Stanislaus County Sheriff Adam Christianson on Wednesday testified about an investigation of a Modesto bail bondsman accused of conspiring in holding clients against their will to extort additional payments from them.

Aleo John Pontillo, owner of AJ’s Bail Bonds, also is charged with two counts of grand theft in connection with a claimed bail forfeiture fraud scheme. His trial continued Wednesday morning with testimony from the sheriff, who was called to the witness stand by defense attorney Frank Carson.

Christianson was asked whether he knew that Pontillo called him a “Nazi” while the defendant was being investigated by the Sheriff’s Department and a federally funded task force. “There’s plenty of people who make disparaging comments about me,” the sheriff testified.

He then said, no, he didn’t know whether the defendant had called him a “Nazi.” The defense attorney informed the court that Christianson said, “Perhaps,” when he answered a similar question during a preliminary hearing.

“I don’t recall if he called me names or not, Mr. Carson,” the sheriff said Wednesday.

Christianson then was asked whether Pontillo was writing an online blog, criticizing the sheriff. “Yes, Mr. Carson, people blog about me all the time,” the sheriff answered.

The defense attorney has argued that his client has the authority to detain people who fail to comply with their bail agreement. Carson has said that law enforcement officials wrongly focused their investigation on Pontillo because they disliked him and were intent on prosecuting him.

Christianson testified that he sat in briefings to get updates on the investigation into Pontillo. The team of investigators included sheriff’s detectives, the sheriff’s gang unit and members of the Central Valley Gang Impact Task Force.

While the Pontillo investigation did not involve any suspected gang crimes, the sheriff said his department chose to utilize resources from those gang units. A sheriff’s sergeant initially led the investigation, but the FBI later took the lead. The Central Valley Gang Impact Task Force is headed by the FBI and includes investigators from local agencies throughout the county.

The sheriff testified that he would, at times, make suggestions and offer insight at the investigation briefings. The Pontillo investigation began in 2007.

In August 2008, Pontillo arranged a meeting with Christianson in his office. The sheriff wired his office to create an audio and video recording of the meeting.

Christianson testified that he wired his office to preserve any statements that would be relevant to the investigation and to ensure there was an accurate record of the meeting.

The sheriff said Pontillo was professional and respectful during their meeting. Christianson gave the recordings to the investigative team, and never discussed the meeting with the investigators.

Pontillo told the sheriff that he had filed a complaint with his department two months earlier, claiming misconduct in the investigation. The sheriff testified that he asked his department’s internal affairs officials for a copy of Pontillo’s complaint and looked into the allegation.

Christianson told the jury that he didn’t discuss any details of the investigation with Pontillo. He also said he never asked Pontillo to cooperate with the investigators and he didn’t care if the bail bondsman cooperated.

Pontillo’s trial began in mid-August and is expected to continue Thursday in Stanislaus Superior Court.

This story was originally published November 12, 2014 at 4:30 PM with the headline "Sheriff testifies in Modesto bail bondsman’s extortion trial."