Oakland Police Officers Implicated In Sex Scandals Appear In Court
OAKLAND (KPIX 5) -- Two Oakland police officers were in court Friday in separate sex scandal cases.
Officer Ryan Walterhouse was hiding by the bathroom area and staying away from TV cameras until a judge called him.
Once in the courtroom, the lawyer for the 26-year-old cop pleaded not guilty to charges of tipping off a prostitute and having sex with her.
Walterhouse's defense attorney Michael Cardoza said, "We are not guilty."
Investigators say this is a new case, not related to the infamous Celeste Guap scandal.
They say Walterhouse befriended a different prostitute while patrolling in East Oakland 6 to 8 months ago.
Oakland police found out about the relationship recently and started surveillance.
Investigators say that on October 1st, Walterhouse paid for sex with the prostitute at a Castro Valley motel.
They say just last Thursday night, Walterhouse called and warned the sex worker to stay away from International Boulevard because of undercover operations.
Court documents say he told her, "You might want to call it an early night. Yeah, you might want to stick to the online thing right now."
The next night, investigators say he warned her again, asking, "You out? Don't be right now."
Investigators say Walterhouse has confessed to tipping off the prostitute. But his attorney says he is innocent.
Cardoza said, "This is a very political case in this county. I really believe there's politics involved."
Aside from Walterhouse, another Oakland officer also appeared in court Friday afternoon. This one related to the Celeste Guap case.
Giovanni LoVerde is accused of receiving oral sex from Celeste Guap when she was a minor. Cardoza is also LoVerde's lawyer.
Cardoza said, "I'm telling you LoVerde never met her in person and never had sex with her."