CAUGHT ON CAMERA: Maricopa County Election Worker Nabbed for Stealing

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Maricopa County, Arizona, often seems to be at the center of voting integrity issues. Allegations of meddling and even fraud have swirled since 2020 after Trump’s loss to Biden in the presidential election and then again after former GOP gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake’s 2022 defeat by Democrat Katie Hobbs. Lake contested the outcome but was not successful in her attempts to convince the courts to overturn it.

Now CNN is reporting that an election worker has been caught on tape stealing security keys:

A temporary election worker in Arizona was arrested Saturday after allegedly stealing a security fob and keys from the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center, according to court documents obtained by CNN…

The Arizona secretary of state’s office said in a Monday statement that the fact Maricopa officials identified this security incident showed that election safety protocols in the county are working. It came amid concerns the incident could be used to further enflame conspiracy theories in the state.

BREAKING: Surveillance footage in the Maricopa County election building captured an election worker stealing a security fob and access keys. All equipment in the building now have to be reprogrammed because the two simple items give access to the entire election system

Election… pic.twitter.com/Z0quzKzinF

— George (@BehizyTweets) June 24, 2024

RNC Chair Michael Whatley emailed a statement on the matter Tuesday, saying the “incident raises serious questions about election security in Arizona that must be answered.”

Yesterday, a temporary elections worker with a criminal history in Arizona allegedly stole a key fob to secure areas from the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center. The RNC and AZGOP dispatched attorneys and observers on the ground as part of our election integrity program to gather information and promote transparency as the situation developed. The RNC and AZGOP have a long history of engaging in Maricopa County election issues both in the field and in the courtroom, and yesterday’s events are an example of our election integrity program’s capacity to provide real-time legal response when issues arise at tabulation centers. This incident raises serious questions about election security in Arizona that must be answered – we will be constructively engaged with Maricopa County officials to ensure that the remedies to this security breach sufficiently address our concerns.

BREAKING: Judge Rules Against Kari Lake in Election Trial, Confirms Hobbs as Governor-Elect

Kari Lake Legal Team Finds 42.5 Percent of Ballots Examined Were Invalid

The suspect already had a pending felony case against him:

Walter Ringfield, who identified himself to police as a temporary employee of the tabulation center, faces charges of theft and criminal damage. He remains in the custody of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office as he awaits his next court appearance due to an unrelated pending felony case against him, a local official confirmed to CNN.

According to court documents, Ringfield was captured on surveillance video walking past a desk and multiple tabulators just after 5 p.m. local time on June 20.

The surveillance video then shows Ringfield stopping at the desk, grabbing a lanyard with the security fob and keys attached, and placing them in his pocket, court documents say.

Authorities obtained a warrant and found the lanyard with keys in Ringfield’s car and the fob in his residence. He claimed he snatched them because he wanted to “clean up.” That purported cleanup is going to cost the county a lot of money:

“Because the security fob was removed from the secure facility, all the security fobs and secure tablets will need to be reprogrammed to be secure for the upcoming election,” court documents said.

Maricopa County Election officials estimate the cost of the reprogramming to be more than $19,000.

“The secure operation of the facility is greatly impeded until the reprogramming is complete,” court documents read.

Both sides will be hyper-aware of voting integrity for the 2024 presidential election, seeing as the stakes are so high. I have a feeling this isn’t the last story that will come out of Maricopa County.