Star Wars-themed love letter torpedoed former Seattle Police Chief Diaz's career

A Papyrus card was their undoing. On the front, an Ewok — the small, furry bear-like creature from Star Wars. On the inside, a loving note:

“You woke me up. Like a prince in one of your Disney movies. I hope I always know your kiss. I hope I always feel your influence. I hope to always know you and me. I love you. Me.”

A member of former Chief Adrian Diaz’s security detail found it while cleaning the chief’s car.

Handwriting analysis found that “Me” was Jamie Tompkins, who Diaz hired to be his chief of staff in May 2023. The card was found within a day or so of her start date.

Diaz and Tompkins have long denied impropriety — specifically that Diaz hired his girlfriend, starting salary $193,900, to what staff described as a dubious role. Diaz went to great lengths to quash rumors, even consulting with the FBI and U.S. Department of Homeland Security for assistance.

Mayor Bruce Harrell fired Diaz on Tuesday after the Office of Inspector General shared its report into the allegations.

The report said Diaz discussed his romantic involvement with Tompkins with coworkers – even showing his security detail a nude photo.

The officer who discovered the card said it “scared the shit out of us,” according to the report. He said they “didn’t know what to do with it.”

He said he believed that information from watchdog agencies and internal investigations flowed to Diaz. “I don’t trust them. We didn’t trust them,” he said. He held onto the card until he was compelled to turn it over to investigators.

When Diaz was presented with the card, he denied recollection of getting it, or knowing who wrote it. Diaz said several people knew how much he loved Disney, and that other people could access his security detail vehicles and could have placed the card there.

Tompkins denied writing the card, and investigators asked her to provide a hand-writing sample.

A handwriting analysis was done. Tompkins, according to the report, tried to disguise her handwriting in the samples she provided by changing the size, slant, and style of her handwriting, and by using “grotesque letter forms.”

‘Guy talk’

As Diaz denied the alleged affair to media outlets, the mayor, and his own command staff, he disclosed intimate details of his romantic involvement with Tompkins to his security detail officers, according to the report.

On one occasion, an interviewee told investigators that Diaz spoke about sexual activity with Tompkins and expressed that “he could not keep up with her level of sexual activity.”

Tompkins’ now ex-husband saw sexually explicit text and photo messages between Diaz and Tompkins, according to the report.

His security detail said that the chief would hand his phones over to them before going into interviews or attending public events, but that he stopped giving them his personal cell.

Another colleague said that Diaz was curious about how to hide messages from disclosure. The colleague suggested an encrypted app, and said that he believed Diaz switched to WhatsApp.

Diaz told investigators he never said anything that would indicate to his coworkers that he and Tompkins were romantically involved. He said the employees interviewed were lying. Diaz declined to turn over his personal phone records.

A helping hand

Diaz admitted to running personal errands for Tompkins, such as helping her replace a flat tire by removing it and transporting it to Les Schwab for repair. Another time he stopped by Tompkins’ place to let her dog out.

He also helped her with home improvement projects, Diaz told investigators, including replacing a faucet, moving, setting up her TV, hanging stuff, and installing dimmer switches. Diaz also helped Tompkins with drywall and painting projects in her previous home.

Diaz explained to investigators that he did these types of things for other colleagues and neighbors too — not just for Tompkins.

“I just help out wherever I can if I have the time, I have the knowledge, like I just do that,” Diaz told investigators.

Cover stories

In order to evade affair allegations, the report says Diaz developed other explanations for his vehicle being parked near Tompkins’ downtown condo.

One person interviewed by investigators said Diaz explained that he had a personal trainer near Tompkins’ condo, and that’s why his car was parked near Tompkins’ place for long durations of time. This person said Diaz never admitted to lying, but that he knew Diaz worked out elsewhere at a different time, and so to them, it was apparent that there was no personal trainer.

This cover story was needed because personnel saw Diaz downtown around the West Precinct, across from Tompkins’ place, but not in his uniform. And they spotted his car in the area, but not in the security garage where he would normally park.

Diaz thinks he’s being followed

Diaz told investigators that he was being watched. He said a black Mercedes had followed him on two occasions, and that he'd discovered a GPS tracker was installed on his car, which he uncovered by using an electronic detector.

According to the report, Diaz shared concerns about being followed into a parking structure in Bellevue, and being pinned by another vehicle. The person Diaz shared this story with encouraged him to notify police in Bellevue or the King County Sheriff's Office, as Seattle Police had no jurisdiction in East King County where Diaz lived.

Diaz used a GPS detector on his car, and it pinged near the right rear tire of his vehicle. The employee that disclosed this to investigators said it was likely the tire pressure monitoring system, which relies on Bluetooth technology, pinging the detector — but that he was not certain.

Diaz became “paranoid,” the employee told investigators, and would drive from the freeway to different parking lots and “observed what he believed were cars following his route” and that other times, Diaz would switch cars with his security detail randomly.

Diaz also thought there were listening devices in his car and asked one officer to check his office for listening devices, but that none were found.

Read the full letter between Diaz and Tompkins below:

"Adrian, when I think about you, I think of the first time I saw you smile. You were so shy, but sweet. And I loved the way you chose your words so carefully. I wondered what you were filtering out. What made you tick? What made you laugh? Why would a person want to take on such a challenging role? Now that I know you, I know the answers to those questions. What I did not expect was how knowing you would bring me closer to me. More in line with who I am. How I feel. What I want. Where I want to go. Before I knew you, I didn’t really know me. You woke me up. Like a prince in one of your Disney movies. I hope I always know your kiss. I hope I always feel your influence. I hope to always know you and me. I love you. Me.”