A Florida police officer has been arrested and hit with a slew of charges for allegedly stealing cash and drugs from suspects during traffic stops.
ndexNEWS identified Miami Police Department Officer Frenel Cenat, 40. He was arrested Thursday following an undercover operation by FBI agents who posed as drug dealers that Cenat allegedly attempted to extort, according to the Justice Department.
Authorities acted on a tip from a confidential source that said Cenat routinely pulled over people known to have bought or sold drugs and stole those drugs along with their money.
On Nov. 3, Cenat pulled over a driver he believed was transporting drugs but was actually an undercover agent posing as a drug trafficker, according to a criminal complaint. Cenat falsely identified himself as “Officer Martez” and told the driver he would let him go if he gave Cenat his backpack with more than $50,000. After allegedly taking the money, Cenat let the undercover agent go.
“You want to go home tonight or spend 30 years in federal prison?” Cenat told the undercover officer, according to the complaint.