Krome guard is arrested for stealing over $5,000 from a deportee, police say

A security guard working at the Krome detention center in west Miami-Dade County was arrested after surveillance footage allegedly showed him stealing over $5,000 from a detainee who was about to be deported, according to an arrest report.

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Matthew Christian Torres, 31, from Palmetto Bay, was arrested on Monday at the detention center at 18201 SW 12th St.

According to the arrest report, Torres was employed by Akima Protective Services as a security guard for Krome when the alleged theft occurred.

The report said the incident came to light when staff at the facility were preparing deportation documents for a detainee identified only as W.J. The detainee told staff he was missing $5,382 in U.S. currency.

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A Homeland Security representative at the facility then provided investigators with surveillance-camera footage from Aug. 19. The report said the footage, which was reviewed at the scene, shows Torres placing the victim’s money inside a logbook, but the cash was never logged in the property book.

Torres was then seen on camera concealing the money inside his black jacket before entering an employee restroom, according to the report. When he returned to the center’s common area, he allegedly was seen removing a clear plastic bag containing the money from inside his jacket and placing it into the right pocket of his beige cargo pants.

The report stated that Torres never reported the money he took to a supervisor.

Torres was taken to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, where he faces a felony charge of third-degree grand theft. According to the Miami-Dade corrections website, his bond was set at $2,500.

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This report was produced by Miami Herald news partner CBS News Miami.