San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan on Tuesday said he's "sickened" after learning about a fire captain being arrested for alleged attempted lewd acts on a child.
Former fire Captain Spencer Parker is charged with three felony counts of attempted lewd acts on a child, according to Sacramento County court records. He remains out of jail on $350,000 bail.
He was arrested by Folsom police during what a legal analyst said appeared to be a law enforcement sting.
Court documents accuse Parker of sending illicit pictures to a person he thought was 13 years old.
"I’m just sickened by these allegations," Mahan said. "We’re working very closely with law enforcement agencies to ensure that a full, thorough investigation is done and that justice is served."
Richard Santos spent 33 years with the San Jose Fire Department before retiring. Now he’s concerned about the department he proudly served.
"It’s very painful at this time," he said. "It just hurts all of us whether you’re active or retired."
First there was the scandal at the Pink Poodle gentlemen’s club in 2022, when a bikini-clad woman was seen getting out of a fire engine. Now come the allegations against Parker.
"Whether it be one incident or two, that’s one or two too many," Santos said.
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On Monday, when asked about the case, the fire department referred NBC Bay Area to the city manager, who would only say Parker is no longer a city employee.
Nobody appears willing to say much more than that.
"I can’t share more at this time without jeopardizing the ongoing investigation," Mahan said.
Mahan said the Sacramento County sheriff is set to release the results of that investigation on Monday.
Sources told NBC Bay Area the potential outcome of that probe has many people nervous at San Jose City Hall.
