Velasquez excerpts, per Miami Herald

Unregistered · 01-09-2020, 11:39 PM

> Now, former Hialeah mayor Raúl Martínez, who led the city between 1981 and 2005, says not firing Velázquez is one of his greatest regrets.
“I never, ever thought for a second that he would one day become the chief,” Martínez told the Herald in a recent interview. “If he were to leave Hialeah and apply for the police chief’s job in Palatka, I would say that guy is a delinquent.”

> Kenneth Harms, a former Miami chief of police, said Velázquez’s blemished record revealed a “lack of integrity and willingness to violate the law” — qualities that he said made Velázquez ill-suited to run any police department, let alone one of Hialeah’s size.
“He should have been terminated a long time ago instead of promoted,” Harms said. “Why is the mayor still protecting him?”

> One of the officers reported his concerns over what he called an “inappropriate” arrest to superiors. But Velázquez claimed the officers were lying about being ordered to arrest Acosta and that they had acted on their own authority. He said he had responded to the scene as “Sergio, a civilian,” not as a police lieutenant.
But an internal affairs detective found that Velázquez had “involved himself in a scene of a criminal investigation while off duty, having a personal interest in the outcome of the investigation, which involved personal friends.” The detective also noted that Velázquez refused to provide his cellphone and SunPass toll records and had “thus interfered with an internal affairs investigation.”

> Finally, the investigation revealed that a police report documenting the impounding of the cocaine had vanished — not the first time that had happened in a case involving Velázquez. “It is a fact there have been other reports which have become missing in status .... when Lieutenant Velázquez has been the subject officer under investigation,” the IA probe noted.

His fortunes turned after Hernández made him chief in 2012. Velázquez now makes $182,802, up from $119,596 when he started in that role, according to Hialeah city budgets. That’s a bump of 52 percent. Budgeted salaries for police officers and trainees grew 4 percent over that same time. Why?

Unregistered · 01-10-2020, 10:41 AM

Originally Posted by Unregistered

> Now, former Hialeah mayor Raúl Martínez, who led the city between 1981 and 2005, says not firing Velázquez is one of his greatest regrets.
“I never, ever thought for a second that he would one day become the chief,” Martínez told the Herald in a recent interview. “If he were to leave Hialeah and apply for the police chief’s job in Palatka, I would say that guy is a delinquent.”

> Kenneth Harms, a former Miami chief of police, said Velázquez’s blemished record revealed a “lack of integrity and willingness to violate the law” — qualities that he said made Velázquez ill-suited to run any police department, let alone one of Hialeah’s size.
“He should have been terminated a long time ago instead of promoted,” Harms said. “Why is the mayor still protecting him?”

> One of the officers reported his concerns over what he called an “inappropriate” arrest to superiors. But Velázquez claimed the officers were lying about being ordered to arrest Acosta and that they had acted on their own authority. He said he had responded to the scene as “Sergio, a civilian,” not as a police lieutenant.
But an internal affairs detective found that Velázquez had “involved himself in a scene of a criminal investigation while off duty, having a personal interest in the outcome of the investigation, which involved personal friends.” The detective also noted that Velázquez refused to provide his cellphone and SunPass toll records and had “thus interfered with an internal affairs investigation.”

> Finally, the investigation revealed that a police report documenting the impounding of the cocaine had vanished — not the first time that had happened in a case involving Velázquez. “It is a fact there have been other reports which have become missing in status .... when Lieutenant Velázquez has been the subject officer under investigation,” the IA probe noted.

His fortunes turned after Hernández made him chief in 2012. Velázquez now makes $182,802, up from $119,596 when he started in that role, according to Hialeah city budgets. That’s a bump of 52 percent. Budgeted salaries for police officers and trainees grew 4 percent over that same time. Why?

Ummmmm because Hernandez and Velázquez are corrupt city officials that’s why