Sean Hannity’s sheriff friend faces mounting ethics allegations
September 19, 2019Carmine Marceno faces questions over whether he is qualified, unusual political payments and relationship with crime victim
Carmine Marceno was a rising Republican star in Florida a year ago, having leveraged his crime-fighting prowess, celebrity friendships and knack for self-promotion to secure the job of Lee county sheriff.
Sean Hannity told viewers of his primetime Fox News show that Marceno was a dear friend. On Marcenos recommendation, Hannity was made an honorary deputy of the county and given a gold star badge.
Rick Scott, then Floridas governor, travelled to speak at Marcenos swearing-in, having selected him for the role. I dont think theres anybody in the state that is going to do a better job than Carmine, Scott, now a US senator, said at the time.
But as he campaigns to be elected sheriff in his own right next year, Marcenos political sheen appears to be wearing thin.
The sheriff is facing allegations that he did not properly qualify as a Florida police officer. One of his predecessors has warned that if confirmed, the finding could void every arrest Marceno made and vacate convictions he helped secure.
The Guardian has identified unusual payments of $24,000apparently made to another close friend of Marceno from a political committee with connections to his election campaign, and misreported to Florida authorities.
And Marceno has been accused of inappropriate conduct towards a woman he dated after she reported a crime to his office. The woman alleges the sheriff abused his position and begged her to have an abortion after she became pregnant.
Marceno, 47, has denied wrongdoing. He did not respond to questions. Lt Anita Iriarte, a spokeswoman for the sheriff, said in an email: We are respectfully declining to comment.
In a statement, Hannity said Marceno was an incredibly hard-working, law-abiding official who is a dedicated public servant. The Fox News host said his friend had frequently gone beyond his duties to keep the people of Lee county safe.
Born and raised in New York City, Marceno worked as a parks police officer on Long Island in the late 1990s before moving to Naples, in south-west Florida. He worked for a tanning salon run by his father and joined the city police department in 1999.
It is not clear, however, that he should have been allowed to.
Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/us