This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A former Carbon County sergeant was sentenced to jail time and probation Monday for stealing drugs from work.
Christopher Howard Basso, 38, was accused of breaking into the sheriff's office while he was on administrative leave sometime in January and stealing methamphetamine from the evidence room.
On Monday, a judge sentenced the former sergeant to 36 months probation and ordered him to serve 30 days in the Carbon County jail. He has until Jan. 17 to report to the facility, according to court records.
Basso was originally charged in 7th District Court with third-degree felony burglary, two second-degree felony counts of possession or use of a controlled substance and one class A misdemeanor count of tampering with evidence.
In October, Basso accepted a plea deal that reduced his burglary charge to class B misdemeanor trespassing and one of his drug possession charges to a class A misdemeanor. He also pleaded guilty to felony drug possession and misdemeanor tampering.
According to the Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Council, Basso was put on administrative leave on Jan. 18, 2013, after failing two drug tests. On Jan. 23, 2013, video surveillance cameras recorded Basso entering the evidence storage room and tampering with drug evidence envelopes. Basso later admitted to taking methamphetamine from the evidence room and ingesting it. He was subsequently fired in February, and charges were filed against him in March.
The POST Council revoked Basso's police officer certification during a September hearing.
Twitter: @jm_miller