Inset: Miami Police Officer Zamir Vargas Valerio (Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center). Background: City of Miami Police Department (Google Maps).
A 37-year-old police officer in Florida has been arrested after he allegedly tried to “reconnect” with his ex-girlfriend by writing her a phantom traffic ticket, but was found out after it was revealed that the woman was not even in the country at the time.
Miami Police Officer Zamir Vargas Valerio was taken into custody Thursday morning and charged with one count of official misconduct and one count of offenses against users of computers, computer systems, computer networks, and electronic devices, both of which are felonies, authorities announced.
According to a news release from the Miami-Dade State Attorney”s Office, the matter was first brought to the attention of authorities when the victim’s mother reached out to her daughter — an active-duty member of the U.S. military who was deployed overseas at the time — regarding a “correspondence from traffic court.”
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The victim told her mother that the ticket had to be a mistake because she was out of the country at the time the violation was said to have occurred. However, after reaching out to the Miami-Dade Clerk of the Courts, the mother learned that the traffic citation had been “validly issued.”
The victim then contacted the Miami-Dade Police Department about the ticket. The department’s internal affairs division soon learned that the officer whose name was listed as issuing the citation had been out on disability leave at the time of the alleged violation.
Upon further investigation, the internal affairs investigators said they discovered that Valerio “utilized the computer access password of another police officer to issue the false traffic citation,” per the release.
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“Officer Valerio allegedly used criminal justice resources of a major police department in what may be seen as an attempt to reconnect with a former girlfriend. This is not only beyond normal comprehension, but it is also a violation of the law,” State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement after charges were brought against the officer. “Both the Miami Police Department and I believe that no one should ever have to worry about the possible abuse of power or the weaponization of private information. The filing of these criminal charges is proof of this belief.”
City of Miami Police Chief Manuel A. Morales described Vargas’ alleged conduct as “serious criminal and ethical violations” that do not “reflect the values and dedication” of the rest of the men and women at the department.
“As Chief of Police, I want to make it unequivocally clear that we are committed to upholding the highest standards of integrity, professionalism, and accountability within our ranks,” he said. “Our department initiated this investigation because we hold ourselves to the same standards we ask of our community — transparency, responsibility, and obedience to the rule of law.”
