Miami-Dade’s village puts police chief on administrative leave

BISCAYNE PARK, Fla. – The leaders of Biscayne Park, a village of about 3,000 in Miami-Dade County, recently placed the police chief on administrative leave.

Mark Steele, the deputy chief of police, then quietly stepped up to replace Luis Cabrera as chief.

According to an April e-mail, Chris Truitt, the village manager, instructed Cabrera “not to communicate” with village staff.

The Miami-Dade County Association of Chiefs of Police received a resignation letter from Cabrera, who had served as a board member.

In 2018, Cabrera resigned from the Miami Police Department to join the village’s department after Chief Raimundo Atesiano’s arrest.

About six years ago, Atesiano was sentenced to three years over civil rights violations after pinning cases on innocent people.

The motive of Cabrera’s resignation from the county association and his administrative leave from the village isn’t clear.

Local 10 News sources familiar with the change said Cabrera is the subject of an ongoing investigation.