An officer with the St. Cloud Police Department is facing up to five years in prison after pleading guilty to dealing in firearms without a license.
On Tuesday, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida announced that 31-year-old Michael Adrian Nieto has pleaded guilty to the gun trafficking offense.
According to the plea agreement, Nieto – a sworn law enforcement officer for SCPD and school resource officer at St. Cloud High School – “repeatedly purchased and resold firearms to individuals.”
Among others, Nieto supplied firearms to Ernesto Vazquez, a key member of a criminal conspiracy that smuggled hundreds of guns to the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Haiti. Nieto also used police databases to provide sensitive and confidential information to Vazquez, which benefited their smuggling operation.
Between June 6, 2022, and September 4, 2024, Nieto purchased at least 58 firearms, many of which were identical and purchased together or close in time to one another.
On October 17, 2024, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) agents executed a federal search warrant at Nieto’s home. During this search, they seized a dozen firearms that were still in his possession.
On the day of the search, Nieto told FBI and ATF agents that he had repeatedly purchased guns, which he then resold to individuals, including Vazquez. He further admitted to knowing that these guns were being transferred to third parties, which is a violation of federal law.
Nieto also told the agents that Vazquez had provided him with illegal items that included a machine gun conversion device.
Vazquez previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to traffic firearms, and he is scheduled to be sentenced next month.
Nieto’s sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled. He is facing a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison.
“The St. Cloud Police Department has worked closely with the Department of Justice to assist them in their investigation regarding former officer Michael Nieto,” said St. Cloud Police Chief Douglas Goerke. “In the wake of the recent DOJ findings, we are conducting our own in-depth investigation into the matter.”
Goerke further stated that the police department “pledges to take immediate action should an officer act in a manner that could break a community’s trust, no matter their rank or tenure with the department.”
This case was investigated by the FBI and ATF. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Noah P. Dorman.