Hialeah Police Officer Sentenced to 5 Years In Prison

MIAMI, FL — A former Hialeah police officer was sentenced to five years in jail on Tuesday after pleading guilty to illegally accessing a Florida law enforcement database to commit identify fraud. Thirty-eight-year-0ld Raul Castellon is also expected to be given an order of forfeiture and restitution in the amount of $64,500. His co-defendant, Neilin Gonzalez Diaz, of Hialeah, was sentenced to six years and nine months in jail.

Both men previously pleaded guilty to corruption, access device fraud and identity theft charges. They were sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Federico A. Moreno of the Southern District of Florida. (Sign up for our free Daily Newsletters and Breaking News Alerts for the Miami Patch.)

"According to court documents, from on or about June 1, 2016, and continuing through on or about October 19, 2016, Castellon used his position as a law enforcement officer to access a confidential database and take screen shots from the database, which contained personal identifying information of other persons," according to federal prosecutors.

Like Miami Patch on Facebook

The system, which is called the Florida Driver and Vehicle Information Database or DAVID, contains motor vehicle information on Florida drivers.

"Castellon sent over 25 screen shots depicting the personal identifying information of unsuspecting victims to Gonzalez Diaz in exchange for gifts," prosecutors said. "Gonzalez Diaz used the confidential information received from Castellon to assume the identities of the victims and fraudulently obtain merchandise from retail stores throughout Florida."

The Hialeah Police Department terminated Castellon’s employment after the charges were announced.

The charges were announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Benjamin G. Greenberg for the Southern District of Florida; George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Miami and Peter Forcelli, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Miami.

The case was investigated by the FBI, including the Miami Area Corruption Task Force, ATF, Miami-Dade Police Department and Hialeah Police Department.