Fired deputy cleared of domestic abuse claim

Alex Valentin still faces charges for other incidents involving a fellow officer he dated

A former Osceola County deputy sheriff facing criminal charges after a fellow officer he was dating made domestic violence allegations last year was cleared by an internal investigation of claims that he threatened to shoot her, the Orlando Sentinel has learned.

Internal investigative files obtained by the Sentinel explore in further detail the allegations of abuse against ex-Deputy Alex Valentin stemming from an incident in Osceola County in September 2022, and describe the alleged victim’s initial reluctance to cooperate.

They also make clear that the Osceola County Sheriff ’s Office had information about the relationship between the two deputies prior to Valentin’s arrest in Orlando last July. Valentin was fired on the day of his arrest.

Valentin is being prosecuted in Orange County for incidents separate from those the Osceola investigators reviewed. An affidavit in that case makes clear his former girlfriend is now cooperating with authorities. The Sentinel is not naming her because she is a reported victim of domestic violence.

The Osceola probe stems from a September encounter between Valentin and the fellow deputy that originated at Osceola Technical College, described as a typical meeting spot for the pair.

The couple were sitting in Valentin’s unmarked patrol car as he spoke with his wife. Once the conversation got heated, the alleged victim said she tried to leave in her own patrol car, but he grabbed her by the arm, only to release her as she drove away. She told investigators that Valentin followed her and called her, demanding she pull over.

At one point, the alleged victim said Valentin’s car tapped her patrol car from behind. He then followed her into a car wash parking lot in Kissimmee, where he allegedly told her over the phone that he had a gun pointed at her and that he “had a shot.” She later told Orlando police she could not see if he had a gun through his tinted windows but was able to escape after she was dispatched to a call for service.

Though Osceola County Sheriff ’s Office investigators were able to use cellphone records to confirm their locations the

day of the alleged incident, the allegations were determined to be “not sustained.” According to investigators, that is partly because the victim denied the incident took place the first time she was asked about it, in March 2023, after a deputy she confided in reported it to a lieutenant.

Osceola investigators also were unable to find surveillance video that could confirm the story, they said. They reported further that the alleged victim initially reneged on submitting her phone for forensic review, and that no evidence was found on the phone when she finally turned it over.

Though the allegations of domestic violence were not sustained, the Osceola investigation, completed in December but released earlier this week, does offer details relevant to Valentin’s firing, which occurred the same day as his July 10 arrest in Orlando for false imprisonment and domestic battery against the woman.

The victim told police she had been in an on-and-off relationship with Valentin since 2019, but their arguments became increasingly volatile. In 2021, she said, Valentin first began to hit her. The violence continued even after the alleged on-duty incident in Osceola County, including another incident where she said he pointed a gun at her, and records indicate she provided photos of her injuries to investigators. Their relationship ended last June.

Migdalia Perez, Valentin’s lawyer, did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.

Few details were available outside of Valentin’s arrest affidavit before the OCSO released its report this week. At the time of the arrest, the agency did not say when it was made aware of the victim’s allegations, but said in a statement that Sheriff Marcos López’s “support and concern is with the victim.”

Valentin had been working for the Sheriff ’s Office for 11 years before he was fired. Personnel records show he had not been disciplined at the agency prior to his arrest, and the only other complaint stemmed from a supposed shoplifting at a Walmart involving him and his wife and investigated by the St. Cloud Police Department. They were later exonerated as police determined they left a self-checkout without paying for their items by accident.

Valentin’s agency records also show a history of commendations for his work at the Sheriff ’s Office, including at its Narcotics Enforcement Team, where he had worked since July 2021.

He plans to appeal his termination.

If you or someone you know is struggling with domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233 or Florida’s Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-500-1119. In Central Florida, you can also call the Harbor House’s 24-hour confidential crisis hotline at 407-886-2856.