ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – An Orlando man was arrested after deputies said he tried to get an employee at an apartment complex to open one of the units so he could look for “Mexicans” who were there illegally.
In an arrest affidavit, deputies said they responded to 13675 Lake Vining Drive — in the Sabal Palm Apartment complex — on Monday evening after receiving reports about a “suspicious person.”
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Upon arrival, a responding deputy found a man in the parking lot next to a blue bicycle, already speaking with another deputy, the affidavit shows.
According to investigators, the man — identified as Steven Donovan, 47 — claimed he was a “homeland security officer,” providing a state-issued blue card as proof.
A witness told deputies that Donovan had claimed to work for the police and was “investigating illegal immigrants in the area,” and Donovan had asked the witness to open up the door for one of the apartments.
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“(The witness) advised after asking him to open up the apartment door, (Donovan) opened his jacket and show him a part of a handgun,” the affidavit reads. “(The witness) advised he left the male and went to the front office of the apartment complex to call law enforcement. (The witness) stated (Donovan) came to the front office and started knocking on the doors and windows, screaming he was the police.”
Deputies said they confronted Donovan, who explained he was working as an officer and was making sure “Mexicans” were not illegally staying at the complex.
In addition, Donovan said he was in the apartment complex a few days ago and had seen a “Mexican” at the apartment with a rolled-up mattress and broken lock, so Donovan had returned to make sure that the person was not still in the apartment, deputies added.
According to the sheriff’s office, deputies searched Donovan, finding a handgun, ammunition and a pocket knife.
“When Steven was being secured and being walked to an Orange County Patrol Vehicle, he made a spontaneous utterance that deputies could not arrest him because he was a cop,” the affidavit continues.
Now, Donovan faces a charge of falsely impersonating an officer. He is held on a bond of $1,000.