Miami-Dade police lieutenant and union VP suspended amid criminal probe in Palm Beach

A Miami-Dade police lieutenant and high-ranking union member has been suspended with pay while Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office deputies investigate an alleged incident that took place two weeks while he was in Palm Beach Gardens for a a police union gala.

Lt. John Jenkins resigned as executive vice president of Miami-Dade’s Police Benevolent Association last week. He was relieved of duty by Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo “Freddy” Ramirez pending the outcome of the investigation. Miami-Dade internal affairs investigators reached out to Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office detectives before Ramirez made his decision.

“It’s a criminal investigation and the lieutenant has been relieved of duty,” said Miami-Dade PBA President Steadman Stahl.

Stahl refused to go into detail about the incident. And the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office didn’t return phone calls relating to a probe of Jenkins. The incident allegedly took place in the early morning hours of April 25.

The website for the Palm Beach County PBA shows that the “Black-tie optional” 13th Annual PBA Officer’s Ball was sold out at Trump National Jupiter Golf Club on April 24. Tickets for the event ran the gamut from $200 to $10,000, with lieutenants shelling out $2,500 a piece for a four-seat table.

The three-day event, which included golf and dinners, took place at two locations. The alleged incident, according to Stahl, did not take place on the Trump property.

Jenkins, who began working with MDPD in 1996 and who worked in the department’s public information office before moving to union leadership, could not be reached for comment. He was recently named a new member of the Orange Bowl Committee.

It wasn’t immediately clear if he had hired an attorney.