Former Assistant OC Sheriff Dead At 61

ORANGE COUNTY (CBSLA.com) — The former assistant sheriff of Orange County, Don Haidl, died Tuesday night, CBS2 confirmed.

Haidl was a key figure in the longtime corruption investigation of the Orange County Sheriff's Department.

He was accused of paying cash bribes to former Sheriff Mike Carona and other top OC officials and was later appointed assistant sheriff although he lacked law enforcement experience. Haidl subsequently cooperated with the government in the  investigation of Carona.

Haidl later made headlines in the trial of his son and two other men who were convicted in the 2005 rape of a teenage girl.

Haidl died at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach  of natural causes.

His family released the following statement to the Orange County Register: "He died as he lived, surrounded by the people he loved. He will be greatly missed by all who were privileged to know him."

Haidl was 61.