HIALEAH GARDENS, Fla. — A police officer is facing several charges after investigators said he stole another officer’s credit card and sold several department-issued weapons, including an AR-15 rifle.
Leonardo Carbo, an officer with the Hialeah Gardens Police Department, was arrested on several charges, including credit card fraud and theft, WFOR reported.
The investigation into Carbo’s activities began in September, when his partner noticed some unauthorized transactions on his credit card statement, WPLG reported. Investigators said Carbo charged more than $1,500 to the card, including purchases for Puma shoes and Uber rides, as well as visits to Walmart, gas stations and restaurants.
The officer whose credit card was used told investigators that he had remembered leaving the card at a restaurant and asked Carbo to pick it up, WTVJ reported.
Among the businesses where the credit card had been used was a pawnshop, where there were two transactions listed, WPLG reported.
When detectives visited the pawnshop where the transactions took place, they discovered that Carbo had pawned his department-issued Glock pistol and Aramlite AR-15 rifle, WTVJ reported.
Both the Glock pistol and AR-15 rifle were service weapons issued by the Hialeah Gardens Police Department, The Miami Herald reported.
In the arrest report obtained by The Miami Herald, officers said that Carbo’s first visit to the pawnshop was in August, less than eight weeks after he was hired, and at that point he pawned the Glock handgun for $300. The report said he then returned days later, trading the AR-15 rifle for $310. Carbo was accused of visiting twice more in September, both times selling Glocks for $300, The Miami Herald reported.
Investigators said Carbo’s fifth visit to the pawnshop caught their attention, because it was at that point that Carbo allegedly used his partner’s credit card to buy back one of the pawned guns and buy another, The Miami Herald Reported.
The Hialeah Gardens Police Department told WPLG that Carbo was immediately fired after his arrest: “We acted swiftly after learning of his actions and proceeded with a criminal and internal affairs investigation, leading to his termination and arrest. We were disappointed (with) his actions since they do not align with the values or mission of our agency.”
The president of the South Florida Police Benevolent Association confirmed to The Miami Herald that Carbo is a member of the union, but said that he had not contacted their offices.
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