Seminole County deputy charged with organized fraud for falsifying overtime timesheets

Deputy Nestor Nieves Jr., a member of the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office since September 2015, surrendered Thursday at the John E. Polk Correctional Facility after the Office of the State Attorney, 18th Judicial Circuit, issued an arrest warrant charging him with one count of organized fraud, a third‑degree felony. Booking records show he posted a $3,000 bond and was released pending further proceedings.

Prosecutors allege Nieves falsified overtime timesheet entries for off‑duty details between Oct. 1, 2024 and Aug. 31, 2025 to receive pay for hours he did not work. According to a capias request filed with the state attorney, those falsified entries resulted in “thousands of dollars” in compensation that prosecutors say was unearned. No specific dollar total was listed in the charging documents made available in the arrest process.

The criminal charge follows an internal Seminole County Sheriff’s Office investigation into off‑duty overtime assignments and timekeeping practices. Sheriff’s office investigators reviewed Nieves’ submitted overtime entries and, after completing their internal probe, submitted the case to the Office of the State Attorney for prosecutorial review. Prosecutors reviewed the sheriff’s office investigation and determined probable cause existed to seek the arrest warrant that led to Nieves’ surrender.

Nieves was suspended from his duties in late August 2025 while the internal investigation into the overtime entries was under way. He has remained off patrol since that administrative action, and the sheriff’s office provided investigative material to the 18th Judicial Circuit as part of the charging process. Records reviewed do not include any named statement from Nieves, his attorney, the sheriff’s office, or the state attorney’s office.

Local reporting indicates a related investigation involving another Seminole County deputy remains ongoing, though no names, timelines, or additional allegations have been released to date. The capias request and the prosecutors’ probable cause finding are the primary publicly disclosed documents outlining the allegations; neither a detailed ledger of the disputed overtime entries nor an exact total of the alleged improper payments has been released.

No court date or additional filings were included with the charging language at the time of Nieves’ surrender. The case will proceed through the Office of the State Attorney, 18th Judicial Circuit, where prosecutors may determine next steps, and Seminole County residents and agencies that hire off‑duty deputies for private details may expect further scrutiny of timekeeping and payroll practices as the investigation unfolds.