Three Fort Lauderdale
police officers surrendered themselves at County Jail on Thursday to face
criminal misconduct charges, including allegations they lied about a car chase
and arrest.
The officers, members of
the controversial street crimes unit known as the Raiders, were booked into
jail around midday. They have been relieved of duty without pay while under
prosecution. The case was investigated by an FBI and city police corruption
task force.
Sgt. Michael Florenco, 43,
and detectives Matthew Moceri, 29, and Geoffrey Shaffer, 32, all face charges
related to the arrest of a Fort Lauderdale man about 1:30 a.m. Nov. 22, 2009.
Kenneth Post, 49, was
arrested after a police chase that began at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina
hotel on Southeast 17th Street and ended with a crash in the Rio Vista
neighborhood, records show.
Hotel security officers
said they saw Post break into the bar and steal several bottles of booze,
valued at more than $300. The officers filed reports and gave sworn statements
that Post tried to run down Moceri and Shaffer with his mother's white Cadillac
and rammed Florenco's vehicle.
Prosecutors filed eleven
felony charges against Post, but on Wednesday they went to court and dropped
the five charges related to the high-speed chase, assaulting two officers,
violently resisting an officer and battery on an officer.
Post, who has convictions
for burglary, grand theft and drug charges, is locked up pending trial for the
bar burglary, grand theft, and allegedly trying to run down a security guard.
Post was caught on video breaking in to the bar three times in 2009, police
said.
Ron Ishoy, a State Attorney's
Office spokesman, declined to comment on why the charges were dropped because
of a continuing investigation.
In letters sent to the Sun
Sentinel from the county jail, Post wrote that the officers lied.
Assistant Public Defender
Kelly Murdock, Post's new attorney, said the officers "beat Kenneth and
then lied to cover up their unlawful behavior."
"Hopefully, the
arrests send a clear message that violence and perjury will not be
tolerated," Murdock said.
Post's mug shot shows
several facial injuries, and officers wrote that they had to fight him to
arrest him after the crash.
Florenco and Moceri were
both charged with four counts each of official misconduct and falsifying
records, one count of perjury, and one count of conspiring to commit official misconduct.
Shaffer was charged with four counts each of official misconduct and falsifying
records and one count of conspiring to commit official misconduct.
"If these allegations
are true, then these three officers do not represent al of the honest, hardworking
police officers that work at the Fort Lauderdale Police Department," Chief
Franklin Adderley said in a statement.
Florenco's attorney, Howard
Greitzer, said all three officers will aggressively fight the charges. Moceri's
and Florenco's names came up in the November arrests of officers Brian Dodge
and Billy Koepke, who are charged with kidnapping and stealing thousands of
dollars from a suspect. Moceri and Florenco were not charged in that case but
Greitzer suggested their arrests were linked to "an agenda" about
sworn statements they gave that were supportive of Dodge and Koepke.
"I think the state is
misguided in their approach," Greitzer said. "Mr Post ... has come up
with a story that I look forward to a court and jury hearing so they can
vindicate my client and the other officers."
Moceri's lawyer, Anthony
Livoti Jr., also said his client and the other officers did nothing wrong.
"They were called to the scene, they weren't even pursuing Post."
Fort Lauderdale police
spokesman Travis Mandell said he couldn't comment on the open investigation of
the officers but confirmed that Florenco, Moceri and Shaffer, have been
relieved from duty with pay.