WSVN — The top cop at the Coconut Creek Police Department is suddenly calling it quits after his officers are involved in a deadly Taser incident. Some believe the chief was forced out. 7’s Carmel Cafiero has the story.
The tranquil chimes and butterfly garden outside Coconut Creek’s city offices are in sharp contrast to turmoil within the police department under the direction of retiring Chief Michael Mann.
Members of the department have been so unhappy, they’ve sent 7News unflattering photos of Mann, one of which shows him at a staff meeting dressed in costume and another with a lunch message. But there’s nothing lighthearted about the behavior of some officers under Chief Mann’s watch.
Most recently, unanswered questions about the death of Calvon Reid.
Mamie Reid: “It’s something I would not want to wish on my worst enemy, not even the people who I think have done harm to my son.”
The 39-year-old died last month after being hit with Tasers by officers who were not certified to use the weapons.
Calvin Reid: “I think they should be removed from their job until this is settled.”
Reid’s parents may sue the city.
Tammy Alois: “I had way too many cases.”
A former Coconut Creek detective says she will sue the city over her dismissal under Chief Mann. Tammy Alois was accused of letting dozens of sensitive special victims cases go without proper investigation.
Tammy Alois: “I was behind in doing reports only. Anything that was top priority and that needed to go to the state attorney was done and filed.”
And Officer James Yacobellis was recently fired after being busted in a prostitution sting at a Boca Raton massage parlor. Police undercover video shows Yacobellis on the table getting what authorities charge was much more than a massage.
But it wasn’t the first time Yacobellis was in trouble during Mann’s administration. In 2011 he was investigated but not fired for threatening to Taser a 19-year-old he made stand in a bathtub while being questioned.
That same year, Yacobellis was investigated — but, again, not fired — for spending a three-hour lunch at the Rowe Community Center with a female officer in a darkened children’s playroom. They were caught wearing nothing but T-shirts and their uniform pants by a Parks worker who told investigators: “..I saw her more than him because he was laid down in the floor like a — you know — like a dog. You get up and, uh, she was sitting in the chair…”
Yet it took the massage parlor incident for the police department to take major action against the officer. Critics contend these embarrassing cases played a significant role in the end of Michael Mann’s career as Coconut Creek’s chief of police.
Carmel Cafiero, 7News.
Chief Mann could not be reached for comment. Late Thursday afternoon, the NAACP in Broward released a statement calling on the
U.S. Justice Department to investigate the death of Calvon Reid.
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