DeLand, FL - One DeLand Police Department (DPD) officer was fired, and two others faced disciplinary actions after an internal investigation revealed that some methamphetamine the officers seized at a home over the summer went missing.
DeLand officers Michael Mirino, John Rutherford, and Thomas Gillan were called to a home at 1370 Lazy River Ln. in DeLand in July of this year to assist Probation and Parole. Guns, pills, and a substance that tested positive for methamphetamine were all found at the home. A suspect was arrested by probation officers, and the evidence was turned over to the DPD officers.
An internal report from DPD found that the methamphetamine was not placed into evidence or logged in the evidence reports. Mirino had tested the powdery substance that turned out to be methamphetamine, and Rutherford said that he never saw any methamphetamine in the evidence he was provided. The officers' accounts of the incident varied.
After the investigation, Mirino was fired earlier this month, and reports cite his "lengthy disciplinary record." Rutherford was given an 8-hour suspension without pay, and Gillan was given a letter of reprimand earlier this month.
Copyright Southern Stone Communications 2017.
