SANTA MONICA—On Thursday, October 18, Eric Uller, 50, was arrested for allegations of child molestation that were said to have occurred in the early 1990s. According to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Uller is under suspicion for the molestation of four boys while he was working as a volunteer at the city of Santa Monica’s Police Activities League (PAL).
The case came to the attention of the Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) earlier this summer when they received an anonymous tip about the alleged crime involving Uller. Upon identifying the victim, the SMPD reported the information to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department for further investigation. As a result, at 9:30 a.m. on the October 18, Uller was arrested on charges of Lewd Acts with a Minor. He is being held in lieu of a $2 million bail at the Men’s Central Jail in Los Angeles.
Prior to his arrest, Uller was working as a Santa Monica city employee as a principal technology analyst with the city’s information systems department. He is currently placed on administrative leave pending resolution charges. The city experienced a similar occurrence in 2015 when another PAL employee, Donald Condon, was convicted with a misdemeanor charge of annoying or molesting a minor. Condon was promptly fired by the city of Santa Monica.
NBC Los Angeles News reported that Santa Monica School Board member and CEO of Pico Youth Center Oscar de la Torre said that, “It’s common knowledge here in the Pico neighborhood in Santa Monica that Eric Uller was molesting children.”
A statement on the city of Santa Monica website reads:
“Our hearts go out to everyone impacted by this deeply troubling situation. We again encourage anyone who has information about Eric Uller’s conduct, or other information relevant to its investigation to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD), Special Victims Bureau toll free tip line at (877) 710-5273 or by email at specialvictimsbureau@lasd.org. The City will continue to fully cooperate with the Sheriff’s Department as its investigation continues.
The City is aware of the additional allegations that the City was aware of Mr. Uller’s conduct and did nothing to address it. The City is in the process of retaining outside counsel to conduct a comprehensive investigation of these allegations. The City is committed to transparency and accountability. The City will take all steps to protect youth participants in all City programs, and to determine whether there have been any past failings to live up to this commitment.”
