Termination letter for former Ocoee Police Chief showed she was ‘verbally abusive’

OCOEE, Fla. — After Channel 9 pushed Ocoee city officials for answers as to why former Police Chief Saima Plasencia was fired, City Manager Robert Frank revealed complaints about her behavior in the department.

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A letter of termination to Plasencia was attached to several complaints from officers about the behavior of Plasencia while on duty.

The nine pages of complaints state Plasencia targeted officers, was verbally abusive, and harassed employees.

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The letter, obtained by Eyewitness News, said Plasencia was “inappropriate” and belittled people.

In June, an employee stated she walked past Plasencia as they greeted each other. The employee said Plasencia walked up to her patrol vehicle and disrespectfully scolded her.

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“I am going to tell you this one time. Don’t ever disrespect me like that again in front of a subordinate,” the complaint stated.

Back in 2020, a department police union survey suggested Pasencia didn’t have the backing of officers, and at the time, they wanted the Deputy Chief promoted.

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In the same survey taken by 57 union employees of the department, 45-percent felt the morale of the department was poor, and a majority of the issues existed around the Assistant Chief, who at the time was Plasencia.

City Manager Robert Frank fired Plasencia on November 14th after he hired her for the Chief position in 2021 to replace long-time Police Chief Charles Brown.

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