Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio has rejected a U.S. Justice Department demand for an independent monitor to address allegations of rampant discrimination against Latinos in his office's police and jail operations.

READ: DOJ letter to Arpaio's lawyers

The controversial Maricopa County sheriff and the DOJ had been preparing to negotiate ways to remedy alleged discrimination found in a three-year federal investigation of the sheriff's office, The Arizona Republic reports.

A top Justice Department attorney told Arpaio's lawyers this week that agreement on an independent monitor was critical for continuing negotiations and avoiding a lawsuit.

Arpaio, however, flatly rejected such a monitor Tuesday, calling it a political attempt by President Obama's administration to take control of daily operations in his office.

"I feel that turning my office over to the federal government would be a dereliction of my duty," Arpaio said.

Arpaio and his supporters also believe the civil rights investigation is a ploy by the Obama administration to curry favor with Hispanic voters, the newspaper says.

The Justice Department declined to comment Tuesday, but a letter to Arpaio's lawyers from Deputy Assistant U.S. Attorney General Roy Austin indicated that he believes the sheriff's office had previously agreed to a court-ordered monitor and that the latest move calls into question "whether you were ever interested in settling this matter," The Republic reports.

Austin called the establishment of an independent monitor an "absolute necessity" to meaningful overhaul of the sheriff's office.