DELAND, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35 ORLANDO) -
A DeLand Police Officer is off the job after the chief found that he took donations from a local charity.
Surveillance video shows an officer in a cruiser, in uniform, pulling up and loading donations from a drop box, while in his police car two different times. DeLand police say the officer is Brice Miller.
Sgt. Chris Estes tells FOX 35, they received a call from the manager at the Goodwill store on Hwy. 17/92 who said an officer took the donations, not once, but twice. The chief watched the video and began an investigation.
The investigative file says Miller told them he had permission to take items from the box for a needy family. Sgt Estes said, "We interviewed 25 people and we could not get anyone to corroborate the story."
The chief suspended Miller, who then retired on Thursday. Now, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement will review the investigation. "Essentially it all boils down to public trust," Estes said.
