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Orlando police chief's brother takes plea deal in molestation case

ORLANDO, Fla. — Orlando Police Chief John Mina's oldest brother took a plea deal in court Friday morning.

At a plea hearing before Judge Keith White, Edward Mina, 51, pleaded guilty and received a sentence of 17.5 years for charges related to molesting a girl for three years, starting when she was 10 years old.

Edward Mina pleaded not guilty to the charges in June.

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Prosecutors had expected Mina's attorneys to request bond in June so he could leave jail for the first time since his arrest in May. Instead, Mina's defense dropped the request.

Edward Michael Mina was arrested in May on child sex charges, sources told Channel 9's Shannon Butler.

Mina was booked into the Orange County Jail on charges of sexual battery on a child under 12, and lewd or lascivious molestation of a child under 12, jail records said.

Investigators were notified of the allegations Tuesday by a school resource officer, according to an arrest report.

The girl told investigators at age 10 she was molested every day for three years by Edward Mina. She said he began kissing her and he was "teaching me how to kiss."

The girl said the kissing later turned into molesting, investigators said.

The girl told investigators that he would discuss his sex life with her and show her pornography, deputies said.

The girl said that Edward Mina would tell her, "Never tell anyone what I do to you. It's our little secret," deputies said.

The girl agreed to have a recorded phone conversation with Edward Mina and told him she told a friend about the molestation. He said to her, "If you tell them the truth, I'm going to go to jail for a long time," deputies said.

The girl said said the abuse stopped when she was 13 years old.

Sources told Channel 9's Shannon Butler in May that even though the suspect and the chief are brothers who live in the same area, they rarely see each other.

“These are extremely serious and disturbing criminal allegations,” Chief John Mina said at the time of his brother’s arrest. “At this time, I am most concerned with the welfare and privacy of the child involved, and won’t be making any further comment.”