A Florida deputy was suspended Tuesday for allegedly leaking a video of the man opening fire at Fort Lauderdale airport last week to TMZ, a news site known to pay big money for videos that will go viral.
Broward County sheriff’s deputy Michael Dingman is believed to have used his cell phone to record an airport security monitor showing shooter Esteban Santiago opening fire inside the airport terminal.
His own reflection from the airport monitor that ended up on the leaked video is what gave him away.
According to the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Dingman surrendered his badge and patrol car as part of his suspension. He’s alleged to have disclosed or used confidential criminal justice information, according to an internal affairs memo. The memo also alleges Dingman did not use proper discretion and that his conduct was unbecoming of a deputy.
Officials think someone used a cellphone to tape the footage of shooting suspect Esteban Santiago as he pulled a gun from his waistband at the Terminal 2 baggage carousel and began firing on Friday. Five people died in the ambush and six were wounded.
FBI and county investigators have been enhancing the video because they were seeing a person’s image reflected in the glass of the security monitor, Broward Mayor Barbara Sharief said.
The TMZ website is known to pay thousands to sources for videos of high-interest topics.
Dingman, 46, who has worked for the Broward County Sheriff’s Office for 21 years, works out of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.
In 2015, he had an annual salary of $72,735, but made $117,280 with overtime and special detail payments.
He was also reprimanded last year for using a law enforcement database to access the personal information of Florida State Trooper Donna “Jane” Watts in 2011.
Watts was the trooper who earned the ire of cops throughout the state after having the gall to pull over a speeding Miami police officer in 2011 in an incident recorded on her dash cam.
Watts ended up suing several agencies, including the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, which paid her a $6,000 settlement.
The leaked video is included in the news report below. Here is a list of videos and the amount TMZ paid for them compiled by Business Insider.
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