A former Hialeah Police Officer is filing a lawsuit against his former police chief and department, alleging they are the reason he can’t get a job.
Armando Perez said he was at the top of the career ladder when he found himself behind the jail cell.
“I was at the height of my career, doing well, providing for my family, and all the sudden from one day to the next, I’m a defendant,” said Perez.
Perez was busted by his own police department for a bogus ticket-writing scam, but was later acquitted and cleared of charges.
He said even with the acquittal, his life has never been the same since.
His attorney, Michael Pizzi, says they know exactly who was behind the life-changing scandal.
“Chief Velazquez set him up,” said Pizzi.
Perez and his Pizzi have filed a lawsuit against Perez’s then boss, disgraced, scandal-plagued ex-police chief Sergio Velazquez.
According to the documents, Perez is suing “for slander, false arrest, false imprisonment, (and) wrongful termination.”
But Velazquez is not the only one being hit with a lawsuit, they are suing the Hialeah Police Department as well.
“Hialeah was notorious for starting investigations on officers trying to leave,” said Perez.
Three years ago, Perez sat down with 7News after he had been cleared of all charges.
When asked during that interview if the Hialeah Police Department had been wrong in arresting him, Perez answered: “Yes, sir. They definitely were.”
Perez said he was arrested and fired out of spite because Velazquez and others were angry that he was planning to leave the Hialeah Police Department to take another job.
Now, Pizzi wants them to pay for it.
“We will not rest until Sergio Velazquez pays $1 million to Armando Perez and is finally exposed and held fully accountable,” said Pizzi.
The lawsuit comes a week after the bombshell arrest of the former chief for organized fraud, money laundering, and other offenses.
The State Attorney’s Office revealed Velazquez stole and/or spent millions in cash belonging to his department.
“More than $300,000 in Rolex watches, over $11,000 from Cartier, $6,700 from Louis Vuitton, and over $5,000 from Versace,” said Florida Department of Law Enforcement Special Agent in Charge John Vecchio.
Pizzi and Perez said the revelations about first-degree felonies against Velazquez did not surprise them.
“Sergio Velazquez was always corrupt,” said Pizzi.
“That was something that wasn’t very surprising,” said Perez.
Pizzi added that if Velazquez and the Hialeah Police Department don’t pay up, they should expect to see them in court.