Lee County Sheriff and 3 others sued over a plot to plant drugs, false arrest

Reporter: Emma Heaton
Published: Updated:
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Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno speaks at a joint press conference with the School District of Lee County. Credit: WINK News

Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno is at the center of a federal lawsuit filed Wednesday. He and three others – former deputy Niko Irizarry, Charles Custodio and Scott Snider – are all named.

In the suit, Mark Riley, a realtor, claimed he was falsely and illegally arrested on charges of drug possession in 2021. He accused the former deputy of conspiring with Custodio and Snider to plant drugs on him as part of a revenge plot.

In 2022, Irizarry was accused of official misconduct. He was sentenced to a year behind bars, followed by probation.

The lawsuit claimed he should have also been charged with conspiracy to traffic narcotics, perjury, kidnapping, accepting a bribe and more.

Riley’s lawsuit also accused LCSO and the State Attorney’s Office of minimizing Irizarry’s crimes.
Irizarry’s co-defendant, Custodio, got 80 years.

Additionally, the lawsuit accused LCSO of expunging records associated with the plot.

Snider is scheduled for sentencing on Friday.

The 106-page lawsuit also has more than 300 pages of exhibits.

We contacted the Lee County Sheriff’s Office for comment and have not heard back.

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