Roswell cop who falsely accused Sonic employee of spitting in his drink arrested for possessing meth

A Roswell, New Mexico police officer already under investigation for falsely accusing a Sonic Drive-In employee of spitting in his drink has been arrested after his investigators discovered meth and drug paraphernalia in his police cruiser, reports KOB4.

Roswell police officer Christopher Ray Moreno, 22, had already resigned after admitting that he had made up the story about Sonic employee Isaac Briseno spitting in his drink that caused a shutdown of the restaurant as fellow officers investigated.

Already facing charges of false reporting, malicious criminal prosecution, and tampering with evidence, Moreno was taken into custody after authorities discovered methamphetamine, 19 syringes, three meth pipes, three marijuana pipes, a BB gun, and several other items in his squad car. Additionally police investigators discovered a stolen license plate in his home.

Moreno now faces additional charges on possession of a controlled substance, paraphernalia possession, larceny and receiving stolen property.

Authorities say the whole chain of events "may have been triggered by a personal issue Moreno perceived he had with the restaurant employee" which led him to make the false accusation.

Moreno has been a Roswell police officer for just over a year and a half, with Police Chief Philip Smith apologizing to employees at Sonic and the community at large for what he called a "rogue cop."

Watch the video below from KOB4: