A Pasco County sheriff’s deputy was arrested on March 13 after an investigation found he sent a photo of a dead body to a 13-year-old female student at Pinecrest Academy in Wesley Chapel. Justine Lopez Rodriguez, 32, was assigned as security detail at the school when he was arrested on a felony charge of evidence tampering.
The investigation began on March 5, when the girl disclosed to officials at Pinecrest that she’d been communicating with Lopez on Snapchat. The girl said Lopez added her on Snapchat in late January or early February, and they communicated regularly “over a period of weeks.” Lopez was working in uniform at the school when he began communicating with the student earlier this year. The girl described the conversations as initially involving “general topics such as food, basketball, working out, and other casual discussion,” but later Lopez sent her a photo of a dead body. Lopez admitted to deleting the Snapchat app he used to communicate with the girl during the investigation, records show.
A spokesperson for the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office said Lopez was immediately fired after his arrest. The agency did not publicly announce the arrest at the time. Lopez’s phone records and witness statements were reviewed during the investigation, which was conducted by the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office is located at 8605 Citrus Cove Road, New Port Richey, Florida 34654. Pinecrest Academy is located at 6845 42nd St N, Wesley Chapel, FL 34647.
Originally reported by Suncoast News – Zephyrhills
Sources: Suncoast News – Zephyrhills
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