Security guard ‘slipped through the cracks’ after lying on application
COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. -Nov 19 2017
It was December 2016 when Collier County deputies raided the home of Daniel Ortiz in Naples Park and found loads of stolen property, from credit cards to a kayak.
“My neighbor down the street called and said, ‘I think I saw your kayak being taken out of a house with a lot of other stolen goods,’” said Jackie Bammel.
NBC2 cameras were rolling when Ortiz was taken away in handcuffs and deputies started compiling the stolen goods. Bammel’s kayak had been stolen from her backyard just a few miles away from where Ortiz lives. Her friend saw the kayak on NBC2 six months after it was taken.
“I felt violated because as you can see, it’s kind of a secure backyard and he came right into our backyard,” Bammel said.
Ortiz’s job actually requires him to protect property, not steal it. At the time of his arrest, he worked as a licensed security officer through the State of Florida and was employed at a local firm.
“It disappoints me,” Bammel said.
“But I guess after having this happen, it doesn’t surprise me anymore. You have to be more careful with everything.”
Ortiz’s license was suspended by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs. He’s far from the only licensed security officer in Southwest Florida to have been disciplined in the past year. At least 29 security guards in Lee, Collier and Charlotte counties have been disciplined since July 2016.
Keith Perry is a private investigator and licensed security officer who said that many places don’t hire the best candidates because the pay scale is so low.
“You go out and get a job thinking you’re going to make pretty decent money because you spent time getting certified and educated in the security field and then you can’t really make a lot of money,” Perry said.
One security guard tracked by NBC2 was accused of trying to make more money by robbing the people he was charged with protecting.
Patrick Majewski was arrested in May for stealing a bike from the Stoneybrook community. That charge was dropped, but he was convicted of eluding police after he escaped the back of a patrol car.
A records request submitted by the NBC2 Investigators raised questions about whether Majewski should have received his security officer license in the first place.
Majewski has been convicted of multiple misdemeanors, from reckless driving to driving on a suspended license. But on his application to the Department of Agriculture to become a security guard, he checked a box indicating he had no misdemeanors.
A memo from the department less than a month after Majewski’s application said, “no errors found.”
“I’m shocked that the state didn’t do their due diligence there which it obviously didn’t and allowed him to have that license,” Perry said.
NBC2 tried tracking down Ortiz and Majewski but didn’t find either one at their homes. Ortiz’s license was suspended and is under review. Majewski’s license expired but is also under review.
The NBC2 Investigators sent numerous questions to the Department of Agriculture regarding Majewski’s application, but we did not receive any response aside from the public records.
“You can’t rely on all these government agencies to do the right thing and do their due diligence and check thoroughly,” Perry said.
“Some just slips through the cracks perhaps.”
Perry said if you have questions about the security company in your community, you can always ask to see their license or qualifications.
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