A fourth prison officer remains at large.
Three Florida corrections officers have been arrested on murder charges for allegedly beating an inmate to death, while a fourth remains at large, authorities said Thursday.
Christopher Rolon, 29, Kirk Walton, 34, and Ronald Connor, 24, were arrested Thursday following a months-long investigation into the fatal incident at the Dade Correctional Institution in Miami-Dade County, the Department said. Florida Law Enforcement.
They were arrested on multiple charges, including second-degree murder, conspiracy, aggravated assault of an older adult and cruel treatment of a detainee, jail records show. Attorney information was not immediately available.
No additional information was provided about the fourth correctional officer wanted by police.
The incident occurred the morning of Feb. 14, before the inmate was transferred to a correctional facility in Lake County, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which led the investigation into the death along with the State of Florida. Miami-Dade. Attorney’s Office.
After the inmate reportedly threw urine on an officer, he was handcuffed and led out of his cell in the mental health unit, at which point officers “began to beat him,” the Department of Enforcement said. Florida law in a statement.
“The inmate was beaten so severely that he had to be taken to the transport van,” the agency said.
The inmate, whose name was not released by the agency, was placed alone in a compartment of the truck. During a stop in Ocala, a trip of more than 300 miles from the Dade Correctional Institution, he was found dead, authorities said.
The inmate’s death was caused by a punctured lung that caused internal bleeding, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. He also had injuries to his face and torso “consistent with a beating,” the agency said.
The incident initially prompted the Florida Department of Corrections to place 10 officers on administrative leave. An officer also resigned over it, the department said.
“What happened in this case is completely unacceptable and is not a representation of our system or the Dade Correctional Institution as a whole,” Florida Department of Corrections Secretary Ricky Dixon said in a statement Thursday. “The staff involved in this case failed and as an agency we will not stand for this.”
The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, which is prosecuting the case, will hold a press conference Friday afternoon with the Florida Department of Corrections and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to share more details about the charges. penalties.
“Staff misconduct, abuse or criminal behavior has no place in the Florida corrections system,” Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement. “Inmates should not be subjected to ‘alley’ forms of justice that are actions that violate Florida law.”
Reference-abcnews.go.com