Olivarez becomes county’s new lieutenant

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La Salle County Sheriff’s Office Lieutenant Homar Olivarez (Photo, right) has spent his law enforcement career in service to his home county and is congratulated on his promotion by Sheriff Anthony Zertuche

La Salle County Sheriff Anthony Zertuche announced last week that Investigator Homar Olivarez has been promoted to the rank of lieutenant for the law enforcement agency.
Olivarez is a Cotulla native and a 2001 CHS graduate. He attended the Laredo Community College Police Academy to earn his peace officer certification and has served as an emergency dispatcher for the county in the past.
The county’s new lieutenant has spent his law enforcement career in service to La Salle, rising from the rank of deputy to investigator, an office he held for a number of years. He has also served as one of the county’s K-9 handlers, conducting patrols and investigations with his trained police dog, Ben.
In his new role as lieutenant, Olivarez will oversee all criminal investigations and patrol supervisors. His job duties are varied but include reviewing cases under investigation and assessing needs and assets in patrols. He will also assist Undersheriff Rene Sobrevilla with management of grant funds and special programs supported by the state and federal governments, including Operation Stonegarden and Operation Lone Star, which are aimed at increasing law enforcement presence and resources in the border regions.
Operation Stonegarden provides funds to support the overtime pay for officers working additional hours in border security, patrol, and participation in the interception of cross-border crime such as narcotics trafficking and human smuggling.
Lt. Olivarez has undergone training in several law enforcement specialties, among them sexual assault and child abuse, homicide, and crime scene investigations; oil field theft and financial crimes; and has worked extensively with the Texas Rangers and federal investigators on cases related to La Salle County and beyond.
The lieutenant has also undergone specialty training in gang intelligence and drug cartel-related investigations. Acknowledging recent developments in firearms-related crimes, Olivarez notes that his specialty training in active-shooter cases was taken in Bexar County and focused on a coordinated response between law enforcement, fire rescue and emergency medical services. The training was offered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
“I am looking forward to serving the public, to provide the people of La Salle County with the attentive approach to law enforcement and community policing that they demand and deserve,” Lt. Olivarez said this week, “and to help deliver the services of a fully staffed sheriff’s office that the people expect of those who are sworn to protect them.”