Crime & Safety
Pasco Fire Captain ‘Relieved of Duty’ After 2nd Arrest
He was arrested over the weekend following an incident in Punta Gorda.
A Pasco County Fire Rescue captain has been placed on unpaid leave following a weekend arrest in Punta Gorda.
Capt. David Garofalo has “been relieved of duty until such time as he’s been cleared (of charges),” said Assistant Chief Cynthia Holland.
Garofalo, 36, was arrested Dec. 15 on a battery charge, according to Charlotte County jail records. He stands accused of beating his girlfriend in the parking lot of a bar in Punta Gorda, according to the Herald Tribune.
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“Witnesses inside the bar Saturday night heard the woman scream, ‘Help me! Get him off me! Help,’” the Herald Tribune reported.
Garofalo was also arrested in Indianapolis, Ind., in May on a DUI charge. Pasco County Fire Rescue had placed him on restricted duty following that arrest, Holland said.
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The Herald Tribune reports Garofalo earns $58,672 a year as a Pasco County captain and also served as a city commissioner in his home town of North Port prior to losing reelection in November.
“We’re doing all we can to ensure that our personnel are fit for duty and (are) providing the best” service,” Holland added.
See Also:
Fire Captain Charged in Standoff Back on Duty
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