Miami-Dade Cop Accused Of Molesting Family Member

MIAMI, FL — A lieutenant with the Miami-Dade Police Department was arrested Thursday for allegedly molesting a family member from the time she was eight years of age until she was 10. Lt. Braulio Gonzalez was taken into custody by the department's Special Victims Bureau. He was charged with four counts of lewd or lascivious molestation and one count of armed kidnapping of a child.

Miami-Dade Police Director Juan Perez said he was "shocked and disturbed" by the arrest of Gonzalez.

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“Today, as a result of an ongoing investigation, detectives from our Special Victims Bureau arrested a member of our agency," acknowledged Perez in a statement. "To say that I am shocked and disturbed at these serious allegations is an understatement."

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said no one is above the law, including Gonzalez.

"These are extremely serious allegations involving the victimization of a vulnerable child," Fernandez Rundle said. "The charges represent a breach of trust by a law enforcement officer who has sworn to protect the community and uphold the law. All victims of sexual crimes should feel confident that their voices will be heard and the alleged crimes against them will be investigated."

Court documents said Gonzalez had not had a relationship with the child for the past five years. But "during the time that they did have a relationship, the defendant was verbally and physically abusive towards the victim."

The child told her psychologist on Sept. 5 that Gonzalez touched her inappropriately over a tw0-year period beginning in 2011. She would now be around 15 years of age.

She repeated the story to an investigator with the State Attorney's Office on Tuesday.

"She described being woken up and seeing the defendant pointing a firearm at her head" when the girl was just eight years of age, according to the court documents.

Court documents said that Gonzalez threatened to kill someone close to the child if she didn't go with him.

"The defendant led the victim to his bedroom and she was told to lay down on his bed," according to court documents. "The defendant put on a movie and laid down next to the victim. He began rubbing her stomach and then fondled her breasts, vagina and buttocks over her clothing."

Court documents said that Gonzalez continued doing this over the next two years. He placed the girl's hand on his penis on numerous occasions when she was 10 years of age, the documents said.

"I offer the victim in the case, my assurance of our commitment to a thorough investigation," added Director Perez.

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle photo by Paul Scicchitano