OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — Two former Florida Highway Patrol troopers are facing fraud charges after investigators say they billed a Central Florida community for off-duty patrol shifts they never worked.
According to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Office of Inspector General, former FHP Captain Lenita King and Trooper Maurice Vilsaint allegedly submitted invoices to the ChampionsGate Community Development District for patrol shifts they did not work, collecting thousands of dollars.
The ChampionsGate Community Development District contracted off-duty FHP troopers to patrol the neighborhood, targeting traffic violations such as speeding and commercial trucks cutting through residential streets. Troopers were paid through their limited liability companies at a rate of $65 per hour for three-hour patrol shifts, plus an additional hour of travel pay.
Detectives launched an investigation after reviewing the troopers’ billing records. Authorities say they placed tracking devices on the troopers’ patrol vehicles and compared location data with invoices submitted to the district.
The investigation found that King, a 21-year veteran of the Florida Highway Patrol, billed ChampionsGate for 19 patrol shifts, but she was in the community for only 10 of those days. Investigators estimate she received more than $3,500 for shifts she didn’t work.
Vilsaint faces even more serious allegations. Investigators say he billed the district for 60 patrol shifts, even though records show he was not in ChampionsGate. Authorities allege he collected more than $15,000 for shifts he never worked.
According to arrest affidavits, investigators discovered that on some of the dates Vilsaint claimed to be patrolling ChampionsGate, he was working regular FHP duties during the same hours. On several occasions, authorities say he was outside the United States entirely while still billing the district for patrol services.
Investigators also accuse Vilsaint of intentionally failing to report off-duty enforcement work and mileage driven on his state-issued patrol vehicle for seven months. Authorities allege those omissions helped conceal what they described as a fraudulent billing scheme.
Residents expressed frustration after learning about the allegations.
“That’s terrible. They have a job to do, and they’re not doing it,” ChampionsGate resident Ashley Hall said.
Former Captain King and Trooper Vilsaint were arrested and booked into the Osceola County Jail. Channel 9 was there as both troopers were released on Wednesday. Neither the accused troopers responded to questions regarding the allegations.
Channel 9 reached out to the ChampionsGate Community Development District and each of the elected board members. The district declined to comment on the arrests or when officials first became aware of the alleged discrepancies. However, meeting records show district leaders began discussing the future expectations of off-duty law enforcement patrols in April.
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