A former Amarillo, Texas, police officer is accused of using the city’s surveillance system to track a local father dozens of times after developing a personal interest in a female officer the man had previously dated.
Christian Eder, 29, was fired from the Amarillo Police Department on July 17 after an internal investigation reportedly found that he misused law-enforcement databases for personal reasons. He now faces 78 counts of tampering with a government record, according to ABC 7 Amarillo.
NewsChannel 10 reported that an internal audit found Eder searched the father’s license plate through the city’s Flock automated license plate reader system 76 times between February and June 2026. He allegedly searched the man’s name twice through TLOxp, a law-enforcement database containing information such as addresses, phone numbers, vehicles, and businesses.
Investigators reportedly found no police calls, cases, or assignments that would have justified the searches. Eder allegedly entered false explanations for some of them, including “city planning,” while dozens of other searches were reportedly marked with the reason “want.”
The father, who spoke anonymously, said Eder became interested in him after pursuing a female Amarillo police officer whom the man had previously dated. The father later learned that Eder had allegedly been using a department-issued phone to monitor the female officer’s active patrol-car and body-camera feeds.
He became suspicious after seeing Eder’s marked patrol vehicle slowly driving through his apartment parking lot at approximately 1 a.m. The female officer later told him Eder claimed to have seen him leaving his apartment at that exact time.
The man eventually contacted Eder directly and asked him to stop. According to the report, Eder responded with a dismissive message that began, “lol, tough guy.”
The father said he would have immediately gone to Internal Affairs if he had known his vehicle was being tracked through Flock. Instead, he feared that confronting Eder could make the situation more dangerous. Because Eder reportedly had tactical training and served as a SWAT alternate, the father said he became terrified for his family’s safety.
“I’ve had to change where my kids sleep in my house,” the father told NewsChannel 10.
He also said he changed his daily routines and asked investigators for descriptions of Eder’s personal vehicles so he could watch for them. His request was reportedly denied, even though Eder allegedly had access to sensitive information about him and his family.
The case’s legal outcome has drawn attention as well. Prosecutors declined to pursue felony stalking charges, according to NewsChannel 10. Instead, Eder faces 78 Class A misdemeanor counts of tampering with a government record.
Each count carries a possible sentence of up to one year in jail and a $4,000 fine. Eder turned himself in and was released on a single $4,500 bond covering all 78 charges. That bond is a pretrial release condition, not a criminal fine or sentence.
The case also exposed weaknesses in the department’s oversight of the technology. Before the investigation, officers could reportedly access Flock software from work phones while off duty, without automatic alerts flagging excessive searches.
Police Chief Thomas Hover said he was “deeply frustrated and disappointed” that Eder allegedly used criminal-justice information for personal reasons. APD has since announced plans for increased supervisory review, expanded audits, reduced software access, and shorter data-retention periods.
Those changes came after a father said the alleged surveillance upended his family’s daily life. Eder is facing criminal allegations, and the reported charges do not by themselves establish guilt.