MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - When a woman turned over a lost bag to Miami Beach Police, they found a loaded gun that belonged to a former South Florida politician.
It was an unusual delivery at the front desk of the Miami Beach Police Department.
On Aug. 13, the good Samaritan was seen on officer-worn body camera footage dropping off what she said she found at South Pointe Park.
“Thank you,” said the officer.
“You’re welcome,” said the good Samaritan.
The woman was thanked for taking the loaded pistol off the street.
“I did my good deed for the day,” the good Samaritan said.
“Oh, no. This counts for like maybe 20 good deeds,” the officer said regarding the high-profile find.
“Thank you. Have a good day,” she said.
According to police, she turned in a black cross-body bag that was abandoned. The Samaritan believed that the bag belonged to a police officer.
After inspecting the badge that was in the bag, it didn’t belong to an officer, but rather a member of the Florida House of Representatives
The badge belonged to former state representative, current Miami Beach mayoral candidate and attorney Michael Grieco as his wallet, along with his ID was in the bag.
From the body camera footage, an officer was seen removing bullets from what his department described as a “loaded Glock 43 handgun.”
Fifty-nine dollars and 56 cents were counted out from the bag, which also contained pepper spray. Miami Beach Police described the items as found property.
“My bag was stolen and I called it in,” Grieco said.
He didn’t want to discuss any details with 7News, but he did mention that his bag was taken in the vicinity of South Pointe Park.
“My understanding is that there’s currently an investigation about how my personal information got released,” Grieco said.
A former prosecutor, Grieco said that the police department is investigating how personal details were made available. He has since picked up his bag and all his belongings.
On Monday night, Grieco attended a mayoral forum in Mid Beach.
An email was sent to Miami Beach Police for confirmation as to whether or not there is an internal affairs investigation. They responded with this:
“There is an ongoing internal affairs investigation regarding this incident. To ensure the integrity of the investigation is not compromised, no further details can be disclosed at this time.”
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