An ex-Davis County Sheriff’s deputy with a growing criminal history has run afoul of the law again.
Christopher K. Sorensen, 38, was charged this month with two counts of third-degree felony theft in 2nd District Court. If convicted, he could face up to five years in prison for each charge.
On Jan. 11, Sorensen walked into the Walmart store at 221 W. Parrish Lane in Centerville, took a television off the display shelf and tried to return it at customer service for cash with a receipt, said Assistant Police Chief Paul Child. When that didn’t work, he left with the television, Child said.
Then on Jan. 14, police suspect that Sorensen came back to the Walmart and attached a fake bar code to a safe so that it would ring up at a reduced price. When it didn’t, he walked out with the safe without paying for it, Child said.
A Walmart employee alerted police about the alleged theft, and officers recognized Sorensen on the surveillance footage. Investigators interviewed Sorensen at his home, where Child said they found the safe and the TV. He admitted to both thefts, according to the charges.
Police suspect that Sorensen worked with someone else on the fake bar codes, but they are still working on identifying that person. The bar code scheme has been around a while, but it seems it hasn’t been too successful, Child said. Just prior to Sorensen’s arrest,Centervillepolice encountered another person who allegedly tried to switch the bar codes and failed to get away with it.
After a seven-year career, Sorensen was fired from the sheriff’s office in 2003 for violating policy, said Davis County Sheriff’s Sgt. Susan Poulsen. She could not expand on which policy.
Court records show Sorensen was charged in early 2004 with attempted theft, and later convicted — one of two prior theft convictions in the past decade.
He has also struggled with a drug problem for years. He pleaded guilty to a reduced drug use or possession charge in 2007, and did it again in 2008. Then in 2010, he pleaded guilty to drug use or possession and drug distribution in two separate cases.
Court records show he completed a drug treatment program following the convictions, but last Christmas Eve, he was once again charged with drug use or possession.
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Sorensen is scheduled to make his first court appearance for the new theft charges on March 11.
mmcfall@sltrib.com
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