HOLLYWOOD, Fla. — A man was arrested Monday after he allegedly posed as a Florida corrections officer and stole a Corvette from the valet area at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, authorities said.
According to an arrest report, the incident occurred just after 3:30 p.m. Monday in the Oculus valet port, located at 1 Seminole Way.
The report states that a Seminole police officer was in his patrol vehicle when he heard a “quick acceleration noise” and then saw a black Corvette quickly leaving through the main entrance doors of the valet port.
Police said two valet attendants ran toward the officer’s vehicle for help, one of whom said, “He stole the car. That’s not his car!”
According to the report, the officer then caught up with the stolen Corvette just outside the valet area, blocked in the luxury vehicle and detained the driver, identified as Angel Emilio Diez, 60, of Miami Gardens.
The officer noted in the arrest report that Diez was wearing a Florida Department of Corrections polo shirt that had the agency’s insignia sewn onto the front breast of the shirt and also had two patches on each shoulder of the shirt.
Police said Diez claimed he had purchased the polo at Goodwill.
According to the report, Diez tried to throw out a marijuana “roach” as police officers were searching his pockets.
A records check revealed he had an active warrant in Broward County for petit theft and a review of the hotel’s record management system showed he had previously been issued a lifetime trespassing warning, the report stated.
Diez was arrested on multiple charges, including grand theft of a motor vehicle, falsely impersonating an officer, trespassing on property after a warning, tampering with evidence and petit theft.
As of Tuesday afternoon, he was being held at the Broward County Main Jail on a $3,750 bond.
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