CRESTVIEW — A police officer was arrested Tuesday afternoon and charged with credit card fraud.
Investigators discovered that Crestview Officer Walter William Jurgsatis, 46, had unlawfully used a credit card belonging to his former landlord, who also is a city police officer, according to the Police Department.
The officer who was the victim noticed that his credit card had been used without his knowledge, and when he looked for the card he found it missing, according to a news release from the department.
Shortly after he reported the theft to the Police Department on Tuesday, investigators caught Jurgsatis on video surveillance using the credit card to make a purchase, said police spokesman Lt. Andrew Schneider.
Jurgsatis was in the county jail Tuesday night. No bond had been set.
Jurgsatis, who had been working with the department since March 2011, was suspended without pay pending an internal investigation, the release said.
The officer whose credit card was taken requested that his name not be released, Schneider said.
Jurgsatis is the latest of several officers to be arrested. Maj. Joseph Floyd was charged in March with a slew of offenses, including harassing fellow workers and residents, misusing city resources and falsifying documents. The case led to the firing of Police Chief Brian Mitchell in April.
In June, Officer Tim White, who worked under Floyd, was fired for allegedly stealing marijuana from an evidence locker to bolster a search warrant application. He was arrested in October and charged with tampering with evidence.
Schneider said Jurgsatis’ case is unrelated to the previous arrests.
Tony Taylor was named the police chief in September. He said at the time that he was ready to help the department recover from the recent scandals.
Schneider issued a statement Tuesday night stating that the Police Department remains dedicated to maintaining and enforcing the integrity of its officers.
“Although circumstances like these are difficult, in the name of honor and the integrity of the law enforcement profession, we owe it to the citizens we serve to ensure that all laws are enforced, even when it comes to holding our own officers accountable for any unlawful actions,” the statement said.
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Lauren Sage Reinlie at 850-315-4443 or lreinlie@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @LaurenRnwfdn.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview police officer arrested for credit card fraud