Rookie police officer arrested after pawning department issued firearms, including AR-15 – Law Officer

MIAMI – A rookie Florida police officer  is accused of pawning several weapons issued to him by his law enforcement agency for just over $1,200, police said Thursday after he was taken into custody.

The weapons pawned by Leonardo Carbo, 30, included an Armalite AR-15 rifle and three Glock handguns. All were service weapons provided to him by the Hialeah Gardens Police Department, the Miami Herald reported. 

Carbo’s first visit to the Airport Pawn Jewelry, Guns & Gift Cards store occurred mid-August, less than eight weeks after he was hired. Investigators say he pawned his department-issued .40-caliber Glock handgun for $300. He returned several days later and pawned his department issued AR-15 rifle for $310. He visited two more times in September, both times trading in a Glock for $300, according to his arrest report.

It was unclear what kind of details Carbo did or did not report to his agency after the weapons were pawned (i.e. missing).

Despite at least four visits to the pawn shop at 831 NW 42nd St., Carbo’s scheme didn’t unravel until he reportedly used his fellow officer’s credit card.

Police say Carbo used his partner’s credit card while making purchases at a Walmart gas station and a $171.56 dinner at Divieto Ristorante in Aventura, according to the news outlet.

Moreover, Carbo reportedly used the credit card fraudulently to retrieve one of the weapons at the pawnshop for $350 and purchase another one for $385.

The following day, Carbo’s partner called Hialeah Gardens Police Department to report the fraudulent use of his card at the pawnshop. Soon after he detected the other charges.

Police spoke with the pawnshop manager, recovered pawn slips and were able to match fingerprints from receipts to Carbo, according to the arrest report.

The crooked officer had his co-worker’s credit card in his possession since the partner asked him to retrieve it from a restaurant he had recently visited, according to the arrest report.

“Oscar [Carbo’s partner] received a picture message of the credit card from Leonardo confirming that he had it in his possession,” the arresting officer wrote in the report. “Oscar then replied to Leonardo via text message to keep the credit card for safekeeping or to place it in Oscar’s mailbox at work.”

Carbo’s abbreviated tenure as a police officer in Hialeah Gardens began June 27. He was terminated following his arrest, Hialeah Gardens police spokesman Lt. Eddy Medina confirmed.

“The investigation is still ongoing. We just had enough to terminate him because he was still on probation status,” Medina said.

Carbo was arrested Wednesday at his home by Miami Police, according to the report. He is charged with four counts of unlawfully pawning service weapons, petty theft, using fake identification and credit card fraud, the Herald reported.

Steadman Stahl is president of the South Florida Police Benevolent Association. He confirmed that Carbo was a union member, but said the PBA had not been contacted by him as of Thursday.

A man answering the phone at the pawn shop on Thursday said the store owner is aware of the situation, but had no comment since the case was still under investigation.

According to social media sites, Carbo runs a martial arts facility in Hialeah. Although state business records list him as a director or agent of the company, it’s been inactive since 2017.