Victor Aenlle, chief of staff to former San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus, fired from department

By Carlos E. Castañeda

Victor Aenlle, chief of staff to former San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus, was fired from the sheriff’s office a week after the appointment of new Sheriff Ken Binder.

Aenlle announced his removal from his position as a reserve deputy on Thursday in a press statement, saying he would review his options with legal counsel.

“My removal was not about conduct, performance, or qualifications,” said Aenlle. “It was political. It was retaliatory. Sheriff Binder made the decision to release me — not because I failed to serve, but because I stood for accountability, fairness, and transparency.” 

Aenlle’s relationship with Corpus and his influence within the department was a primary focus of a year-long scandal that embroiled the Sheriff’s Office and eventually led to the Board of Supervisors removing Corpus from her post last month. 

In November 2024, an independent report by retired judge LaDoris Cordell alleged Aenlle and Corpus were having an affair, which they repeatedly denied, and accused them of fostering a culture of intimidation and retaliation in the Sheriff’s Office. 

Following the report, supervisors removed Aenlle from his position, but he stayed in the Sheriff’s Office as a reserve deputy. A spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Office would not comment on the reasons for Aenlle’s removal; his last day on the job was Tuesday.

Aenlle said in his 17 years with the Sheriff’s Office, he earned multiple commendations and maintained an unblemished record.

“What I have experienced is what happens when political loyalty becomes more valuable than integrity, service, or experience,” Aenlle said. “When a Sheriff removes people for political reasons, the public loses trust. The system becomes compromised.”

In September, Aenlle filed a federal civil rights lawsuit accusing the county of unfairly removing him from his chief of staff position, defamation, and retaliation against him for supporting Corpus. 

Corpus was dismissed from her position for alleged acts of misconduct following an unprecedented hearing made possible by voters passing a charter amendment allowing the Board of Supervisors to remove a sitting sheriff for cause. 

Following the hearing, the independent hearing officer found multiple causes to remove Corpus from office, including that she directed the arrest of the deputy sheriffs’ union president, Carlos Tapia, without probable cause and retaliated against a captain who refused to take part in a personnel action that he believed violated state law. 

Corpus’s dismissal marked the first time in California history that local supervisors removed a sitting sheriff. She denies all the allegations against her and said she plans to keep battling to clear her name.