OURAY, Colo. — The Ouray police chief was terminated Monday following the conclusion of two internal affairs investigations that were sparked by allegations of rape occurring at his home.
Jeff Wood was placed on paid administrative leave in January amid an investigation into the alleged May 2023 rape of a young woman at his home while the police chief was asleep upstairs.
In a press release, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) announced an investigation into the alleged sexual assault of a juvenile at an Ouray home on May 14, 2023. The investigation was launched at the request of the Ouray County Sheriff's Office.
CBI said three people were arrested — Gabriel Trujillo, 20, Ashton Whittington, 18, and a juvenile who was not named by the department. Each faces a charge of sexual assault, a Class 3 felony.
In its reporting of the alleged crime, the Ouray County Plaindealer identified the juvenile as Nathan Dieffenderffer, Wood's stepson. The City of Ouray confirmed the chief's stepson was under investigation.
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Ouray police chief placed on paid leave amid investigation into alleged rapes
The allegations sparked two internal affairs investigations into Wood.
As first reported by our news partner, The Denver Post, Wood was informed of his termination in a letter from Ouray City Administrator Silas Clarke, who wrote, ”I have determined that you engaged in poor work performance, violations of state law and other actions inappropriate for the Chief of Police.”
Clarke decided to fire Wood based on findings from two internal investigations that concluded that the former chief of police had a “cavalier manner” toward a case involving an elementary school janitor accused of taking inappropriate photos of young children.
Wood was also accused of acting unprofessionally toward women, both department employees and citizens, according to the termination letter.
Wood has denied the claims.
