Florida – A former sergeant with the Hialeah Police Department has been sentenced to three years in prison.
Jesus Manuel Menocal Jr., 34, was sentenced in federal court in Miami. He previously pleaded guilty to three counts of violating the civil rights of women by sexually exploiting them, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
In addition to three years in prison, Menocal will serve one year of supervised release, the statutory maximum sentence.
“The Department of Justice will not tolerate police officers who abuse their authority to prey on those they are sworn to protect,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Civil Rights Division.
“The Civil Rights Division will continue to vigorously prosecute these cases to secure justice for the victims of these reprehensible crimes and to ensure that perpetrators who use their unique power to take advantage of others are held accountable.”
According to court documents, Menocal kissed a woman and caused her to touch his exposed penis; had a second woman, who was in psychiatric crisis, perform oral sex on him; and coerced a third woman, who was walking alone at night, into submitting to oral and vaginal sex.
While not directly related to the offenses to which he pleaded guilty, Menocal also admitted to bringing a fourth female into a Hialeah Police Department building and ordering her to remove her shorts and underwear, causing her to expose her buttocks to him, the DOJ said.
Menocal reportedly admitted that he was on-duty and in uniform during all of these acts, abusing his official authority.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida made the announcement.
The FBI Miami Field Office investigated the case, with assistance from the Hialeah Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Edward N. Stamm, Monica K. Castro and Ilham Hosseini of the Southern District of Florida, and Trial Attorney Kyle Boynton and Special Litigation Counsel Samantha Trepel for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
