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Courts & Crime

Police arrest agent for allegedly breaking into evidence vault in Guaynabo

Jean Emil Rivera Hiraldo, assigned to the Metropolitan Drug Division, was caught with money from a damaged safe at the Juan Domingo precinct early Monday.

PuertoRico.com News Desk··2 min read·Checked against 5 sources
Skyline of Guaynabo, Puerto RicoPhoto
Guaynabo, Puerto Rico skyline, 2013 Photo: Madrican / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)

The short version

  • NotiCel reported that Jean Emil Rivera Hiraldo, badge 37972 with five years of service, was arrested after entering the evidence room at the Juan Domingo precinct in Guaynabo
  • Police said a lieutenant and sergeant surprised him with money in his hands around 12:41 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 19
  • El Vocero reported he was allegedly caught counting an estimated $2,000 after forcing the door and damaging a vault
  • The NIE took charge of the investigation while the FBI and CIC of Bayamón also responded and are evaluating jurisdiction

Arrest at Juan Domingo Precinct

A police agent assigned to the Metropolitan Drug Division was arrested early Monday at the Juan Domingo precinct in Guaynabo after he was allegedly caught trying to steal money from an evidence vault. NotiCel reported that the agent, identified as Jean Emil Rivera Hiraldo, badge number 37972, has five years of service.

According to the police, a lieutenant and a sergeant at the precinct surprised Rivera Hiraldo with the money in his hands around 12:41 a.m. He remains in custody. Telemundo Puerto Rico reported that he allegedly climbed into the evidence room and attempted to take money from a vault.

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Investigation Underway

Personnel from the Criminal Investigation Corps (CIC) of Bayamón responded to the scene. El Nuevo Día reported that the Negociado de Investigaciones Especiales (NIE) of the Department of Public Safety took charge of the investigation.

El Vocero reported that agents heard noises, found the agent forcing the door of the evidence room and caught him counting money estimated at about $2,000. The FBI and NIE are evaluating testimonies to decide whether to assume federal or local jurisdiction. Primera Hora reported the incident is being investigated as possible embezzlement.

Where the sources differ

All sources agree on the arrest of Jean Emil Rivera Hiraldo (badge 37972, five years of service) at the Juan Domingo precinct in Guaynabo in the early hours of Monday, Oct. 19, after he was surprised by a lieutenant and sergeant with money from the evidence room. NotiCel, Telemundo, El Nuevo Día and Primera Hora state he damaged a vault; El Vocero says he forced the door after noises were heard and was counting an estimated $2,000. Sources differ on who leads the investigation: El Nuevo Día says the NIE took charge, while others say CIC of Bayamón was informed and the FBI and NIE are evaluating jurisdiction. El Vocero initially reported the agent had not been identified.

What the reports do not say

The sources do not state how much money was actually taken or recovered, whether the agent has been formally charged, the exact nature of the damage to the vault or door, what the money was evidence of, or the next steps in the investigation beyond the current evaluations by the NIE and FBI.

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Sources

Every link below was opened and checked when this story was published. Official means a government body, agency or the organization itself; Reporting means a news outlet.

  1. Reporting Arrestan a policía sorprendido con dinero de bóveda de evidencia en GuaynaboNotiCel (NotiCel) · noticel.com · Spanish · checked Oct 19, 4:37 PM AST
  2. Reporting Arrestan a policía por presunto intento de robo de dinero en cuartelTelemundo Puerto Rico (Telemundo) · telemundopr.com · Spanish · checked Oct 19, 4:37 PM AST
  3. Reporting Arrestan a agente de la Policía en cuartel en GuaynaboEl Nuevo Día (El Nuevo Día) · elnuevodia.com · Spanish · checked Oct 19, 4:37 PM AST
  4. Reporting Arrestan agente de drogas por posible desfalco en cuartel de Juan DomingoPrimera Hora (Primera Hora) · primerahora.com · Spanish · checked Oct 19, 4:37 PM AST
  5. Reporting FBI y NIE investigan agente escalando cuarto evidencia División de DrogasEl Vocero (El Vocero) · elvocero.com · Spanish · checked Oct 19, 4:37 PM AST

How we checked this

NotiCel, Telemundo Puerto Rico, El Nuevo Día, Primera Hora and El Vocero all reported the arrest and the involvement of the NIE and FBI. The estimated amount of $2,000 and the detail that the agent was counting the money rest solely on El Vocero.

Courts & CrimePolice misconductEvidence roomGuaynabo

Compiled by the PuertoRico.com News Desk from the reports and statements listed above, and checked against them before publishing. It does not include original interviews. Spot an error? Email support@puertorico.com with a link to this story.