He said that initially the reports about alleged violations by Melnis had been investigated by the Internal Control Bureau of the State Police but today, based on the findings by the Internal Control Bureau, a disciplinary case had been opened against the police chief of the Jurmala sea-side resort town and he had been suspended from office.
State Police Chief Ints Kuzis confirmed to LETA last week that the police was probing the alleged violations by Melnis.
The rumor on social networking sites is that Melnis had caused a crash between several cars - while driving under the influence.
An anonymous source told LETA that Melnis had been involved in a drunken brawl and was aggressively resisting arrest when police officers arrived to break up the fight.
The State Police does not confirm those reports.