Second detective charged in scheme
FORT LAUDERDALE (AP) – A second Broward County sheriff’s detective has been charged with taking part in a scheme to extort money from a man who possessed marijuana plants.
Sheriff’s officials said 40-year-old Fausto Tejero is being held without bail on extortion, bribery, armed burglary and other charges. Court records Monday did not list an attorney for Tejero.
A sheriff’s department statement said Tejero was present when Detective Manuel Silva allegedly told a drug suspect he would not be arrested if he agreed to pay them cash. The suspect had five marijuana plants growing in his home. After the encounter, the man contacted internal investigators at the Broward Sheriff’s Office.
Silva is also jailed without bail.