When Tinder or eHarmony fail you, where else can you turn? How about confidential police files?
Leonel Marines, a 12-year veteran of the City of Bradenton Police Department in Bradenton, Florida, was forced to resign in October 2018 when it was discovered that he was using local and state law enforcement files as a way to meet women.
Leonel Marines
via CNN
According to The Washington Post, Bradenton Police Chief Melanie Bevan held a press conference on March 7 to address the matter. She recounted how allegations of Marines’ activity first came to light after a Bradenton couple called in claiming that he came to their doorstep asking to speak to their daughter over a “domestic incident,” which they were confident was untrue. The outlet further reported that, according to Bevan, Marines had seen the woman in a parking lot earlier that day and followed her home.
When Marines was later asked why he followed the woman home, he said that one of her car headlights was out and that he suspected she was driving under the influence.
“The two stories really didn’t match up, and when it was brought to my attention, I ordered a further investigation of the incident, which ultimately led to an audit of Marines’… records use, as well as his patrol activity,” Bevan said. “The results of this audit heightened my concerns even greater due to the discrepancies of the subjects he was conducting queries on.”
The investigation led to results that, as Bevan put it, “cast a dark shadow on our law enforcement profession.”
Marines was found to have reached out to about 150 women inappropriately, using the the police databases a means for contact. Evidence shows that he even managed to have sex with some of these women while on duty. Through questioning his alleged targets, his behavior is believed to have been occurring as far back as 2012.
“As far as I’m concerned, he betrayed the oath he swore to,” Bevan told The Post.
What do you think?
Should Marines be arrested for abusing his power as a police officer for such despicable means, or do you idolize him for his unique “game?”
Let us know in the comments below.