Published on October 16, 2025 at 3:46 pm
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Two Putnam County sheriff’s employees are accused of falsifying timecards and stealing more than $8,000 in pay for unworked hours.
The Sheriff’s Office said it conducted a timecard audit that sparked the investigation into Lt. Michael Wells and Detective Elias Rivera.
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In August, a supervisor found a discrepancy in Wells’ timecard. The Sheriff’s Office said he reported working his normal shift hours on Aug. 4 and 5, despite working as a law enforcement academy instructor on the same day.
The department noted that it allows 40 hours of leave for instructors, but Wells did not use any leave for those days. So, the Sheriff’s Office began an investigation into possible theft and fraud by “double-dipping.”
Wells was placed on administrative leave Aug. 22.
The Sheriff’s Office said the investigation revealed that Wells had been paid by both the Sheriff’s Office and the law enforcement academy for 169 hours of time since January 2024. The Sheriff’s Office said he did not use any leave during those times.
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The department accused Wells of stealing nearly $6,522 during that time.
On top of the accused “double-dipping,” the department said it learned there were times when Wells falsified his timecard by not taking annual leave while on vacation or during personal activities.
He was fired on Oct. 6.
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In September, the Sheriff’s Office began a second investigation into Rivera’s timecard discrepancies.
According to the department, Rivera did not enter leave time when he worked at least 16 off-duty details in seven months during his regularly scheduled work hours.
He is accused of stealing $2,558 for 95.5 unworked hours.
Rivera was fired Oct. 16.
Sheriff H.D. DeLoach expressed disappointment in his former employees.
“We have a commitment to uphold the faith and public trust our community places with us, and these two trampled it for personal gain and are no different than the criminals we arrest on the streets.”
This story was produced by News4Jax, a Jacksonville Today news partner.
