Jacksonville Sheriff John Rutherford says the arrests of Fraternal Order of Police President Nelson Cuba and Vice-President Robbie Freitas shows no one in his department is above the law.
Rutherford told reporters on Wednesday about the two officers’ roles in the Allied Veterans of the World conspiracy.
Law enforcement officials say Cuba and Freitas received more than 500-thousand dollars through a shell corporation during an 18-month period.
The two are alleged to have withdrawn cash weekly, attempting to avoid detection by removing amounts just below the mandatory federal reporting requirements.
Rutherford says Cuba and Freitas were not part of the original criminal enterprise, but appears to have been part of a second scheme with Allied Veterans of America.
Rutherford says the investigation into Cuba began in 2008. By 2010 they determined he may be breaking the law. Rutherford defended the amount of time that has passed since then, saying it takes time to establish a money laundering scheme without tipping off any other conspirators. Both officers are on unpaid leave.
