Political turbulence in Doral: Departures and conflicts shake police department

Conflict and controversy are shaking up the Doral Police Department after the forced resignation of the deputy chief and accusations of mismanagement from a recently fired major. These departures, which come at a time of discord at the highest levels of Doral’s city government, follow the resignation of over 30 officers and a dozen civilians from the department in the last 16 months.

Manuel Arrebola, deputy chief of police, was urged to resign on June 24th by Police Chief Edwin Lopez, acting under the directive of newly appointed City Manager Rey Valdes. Arrebola, who had served for 11 months without reprimand, expressed surprise at the sudden request because he said he had not received any negative comments about his performance under Valdes’ brief tenure.

The appointment of Valdes in June marked a pivotal shift for Doral, following a period without a permanent city manager since Barbara “Barbie” Hernandez was fired in January amid conflict-of-interest allegations. In a 3-2 vote, the City Council hired Valdes with support from councilmembers Maureen Porras, Digna Cabral, and Vice Mayor Oscar Puig-Corve. Mayor Christi Fraga and Councilman Rafael Pineyro’s opposed.

Valdes told el Nuevo Herald that Arrebola’s departure was a resignation at his request as city manager, dismissing rumors of imminent departmental restructuring or layoffs.

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Councilman Rafael Pineyro said that Arrebola’s ouster stemmed from his failure to disclose a past incident from his tenure with the Opa-locka police force, dating back to 1992.

Arrebola was dismissed from the Opa-locka Police Department after admitting to brutally beating a suspect alongside his partner. Prosecutors did not charge Arrebola with any crime in exchange for his testimony against his partner, who was convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison.

High-ranking officer fired

In late May, Doral Police Major Jose Seiglie was unexpectedly fired. A month later, he sued the city for wrongful termination. He is also seeking reinstatement and $2 million in damages. His attorney, Michael Pizzi, said Seiglie has had a distinguished 45-year career, and his firing was retaliation.

Pizzi said Seiglie was terminated because the city brought in “an inexperienced police chief, who had never been a commander for a city, and never worked for a city.”

Seiglie’s lawsuit claims he “exposed malfeasance and misconduct in the police department that jeopardized the safety in the City of Doral,” including the mishandling of crime statistics and human trafficking cases, and a need for more training.

Lopez has been the chief of the Doral Police Department since January 2023, when the council voted unanimously to hire him, having previously served as chief of police for Miami-Dade County Public School.

Pineyro countered Seiglie’s claims, noting improvements in morale and crime rates under Lopez’s leadership. Valdes echoed this sentiment, attributing officer departures to financial concerns.

“Many officers leave for economic reasons,” Valdes said. “The salary of the officers is one of the things that I want to rectify, to retain those young officers and so that they have more opportunities to grow.”

Seiglie’s attorney told el Nuevo Herald that under Lopez, the Doral Police Department “is not stable, and officers are demoralized. Pizzi also accused Mayor Christi Fraga of improperly influencing hiring practices and exacerbating internal tensions.

In Doral’s mayor/city council/city manager form of government, the city manager, not the mayor, oversees police operations. Despite assertions from Seiglie and his legal team, Fraga’s office said she was not notified of dismissals before they occurred.

The city manager also rejected Seiglie’s allegations, stating that the Doral Police Department is relatively young and competes with other agencies in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. “Many officers leave for economic reasons,” Valdes said. “Officer salaries are one of the things I want to address to retain these young officers and provide them with more opportunities for growth.”

Valdes ruled out that the police department is in crisis. “Officers have left, but many talented others have been recruited.”

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