Former Michigan police chief accused of stealing, selling drugs pleads guilty

Former Hartford Police Chief Tressa Beltran pleaded guilty this week to drug-related charges from her time in office, the Michigan Attorney General's Office announced.

Beltran, 57, of Hartford, was charged with eight felonies and a misdemeanor last year.

On Thursday, she pleaded guilty at the 36th Circuit Court to one count each of delivery or possession with the intent to deliver less than 50 grams of a controlled substance and use of a computer to commit a crime, records show.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 24.

Beltran, who retired last year, cannot be employed as a police officer in Michigan again, having now permanently surrendered her law enforcement license, state Attorney General Dana Nessel's office said in a press release.

Beltran's plea deal includes a sentencing agreement of at least 24-40 months' incarceration as determined by the court and a statutory maximum of 20 years, according to the release. Her sentence for each count will run concurrently.

On Thursday, Beltran admitted under oath to having the drugs with an intent to deliver them and to using a computer to arrange delivery, according to the release.

Her plea comes after Van Buren County Sheriff's Office detectives and the Attorney General's Public Integrity Unit investigated numerous tips that Beltran had used her position to commit multiple offenses, officials said.

"I am grateful for the collaborative investigation between the Van Buren County Sheriff’s Office and my department that has allowed us to remove a rampant criminal from her position as Police Chief,” Nessel said in the release. “My office will continue to pursue accountability and public integrity when people in positions of power and public trust abuse their office and harm their communities. Public integrity matters, public health matters, and a drug-dealing police chief cuts deeply against both."

Beltran's attorney, Donald Sappanos, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.