Jamal Sheffield, Charles Simmons, Manuel Valdes, and Camilo Felipe, Miami-Dade County, Florida Parks and Recreation employees, were arrested Wednesday after they were accused of pocketing county funds while on the job, news sources report. Sheffield and Simmons, both 26, were booked into the Miami-Dade County Jail on charges of grand theft. Their bond was set at $5,000. Valdes, 22, and Felipe, 20, were apprehended on charges of theft; it is unclear whether they qualified for bail bond. Reports did not say whether the defendants have hired criminal defense attorneys.
According to reports, Sheffield, Simmons, Valdes, and Felipe all held jobs at the Miami-Dade County Parks and Recreations division prior to their arrests. Based on reports, the defendants worked at local parks, such as the Amelia Earhart Park in Miami. Their duties apparently included collecting entrance fees. Following their arrests, a spokesperson for the division reportedly said, "My administration has a zero tolerance policy for public corruption, and I assure our residents that we will continue to find and punish those who attempt to steal from the very public that they are meant to serve."
An investigation into the alleged thefts began in February parks and recreation administrators discovered that the Amelia Earhart Park was making less money than usual. During that investigation, detective reportedly discovered that the four defendants were pocketing admission fees from the park.
Sheffield was purportedly in charge of collecting a $6 admission fee for each car coming into the park. Detectives later learned that Sheffield was seen pocketing admission fees on at least 13 occasions, reports say. In all, Sheffield allegedly kept around $1,686 of the county's funds. In a similar set of circumstances, Simmons allegedly kept around $1,320 of the county's funds while working at the park. Valdes and Felipe allegedly kept around $50 each of the park's revenue, sources say. "I commend our Police Department for their efforts in this matter, as well as our Parks and Recreation staff for being vigilant and bringing these acts to the attention of law enforcement as soon as they realized that something was amiss," a spokesperson reportedly said following the arrests.
Illegal behavior can take on all kinds of forms. Lindsay Longbottom and Vincent Ewell of Daytona Beach were arrested after they were accused of breaking into a high school and vandalizing several vending machines, reports say. Longbottom, 19, and Ewell, 18, were booked into police custody on charges of burglary. It is unclear whether they qualified for bail or hired legal representation.