Letter: Sheriff seeks details on writer’s claims

Published 1:30 am Saturday, June 20, 2026

Editor,

I read, with interest, the letter to the editor from “John Brown” of Langley. In the letter, Mr. Brown alleged that a deputy encouraged him to commit insurance fraud and that I condone and encourage this behavior.

I do not condone or encourage anything but lawful, professional behavior on the part of the members of the Island County Sheriff’s Office.

I take allegations like this very seriously. I searched our database for all people with the last name of Brown with a Langley address, paying special attention to those whose first or middle initials were the letter J. I was not able to locate any record of a theft or burglary reported by anyone with the name provided in the letter.

Mr. Brown, I would very much like to conduct a complete investigation into your concerns. Please contact me with the date of your report, the case number, or at least the name it was reported under.

If you don’t trust me to investigate this honestly and transparently, I am open to asking for an outside review of the allegation by the law enforcement agency of your choice. The outcome would become a public record.

If you were the victim of a crime and/or witness to the deputy committing a crime, it would be unfortunate if we are not able to follow up appropriately. Otherwise, justice will not be served, and members of the community might assume that your letter was created strictly for political purposes.

I look forward to the opportunity to clear this up.

Sheriff Rick Felici