Fort Worth police sergeant accused of destroying evidence, indicted on tampering charge
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A Fort Worth police sergeant was indicted after a report that he tried to destroy physical evidence while “working in an off-duty capacity,” the police department announced Wednesday.
Sgt. Rodsdricke Martin, 46, has been the center of an ongoing administrative and criminal investigation since January.
The police department said Martin was arrested Tuesday, “pursuant to a grand jury indictment for tampering with physical evidence.”
The indictment, which was returned by a Tarrant County grand jury on Friday, said that on Jan. 15, Martin deleted photographs or images from a computer or reset a laptop to its factory settings to wipe the hard drive. The indictment did not include details of the photographs’ content, and police did not respond to a request for more information.
A spokesperson for Texas Health Resources said Martin was working as a security guard at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital on the day of the incident.
“We assisted FWPD in their investigation and conducted our own internal review,” the hospital system said in an email. “Sgt. Martin has not been eligible to work security shifts at any Texas Health facility during the investigation.”
According to Tarrant County jail records, Martin was released on $5,000 bond Wednesday. His attorney, Robert Huseman, of Varghese Summersett law firm, said their team is conducting an independent look into the allegations.
“It’s very early in the process. We were retained on Wednesday and are in the process of conducting our own, thorough investigation into the allegations,” Huseman said. “Until then, we would ask the public not to rush to judgment. Sgt. Martin has served this community for more than a decade and has devoted his life to helping others.”
Martin, prior to his arrest, was placed on restricted duty and stripped of all police powers, the police department said. As their administrative investigation finalized, Martin was placed on an unpaid suspension.
Martin joined the department in July 2006, according to police records, and worked as a narcotics officer.
This story was originally published March 30, 2022 at 8:48 AM.
