2 Central Florida deputies charged with falsifying a report over a stolen gun
ORLANDO, Fla. - Charges have been filed against two Central Florida deputies, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE).
The FDLE says both men are charged with falsifying a report, which is a misdemeanor.
Agents say Orange County deputy Brian Calkins gave Phillip Donaldson - who at the time was a deputy for the Volusia County Sheriff's Office - two guns that he said he got from his cousin.
Officials say Calkins asked Donaldson to get rid of the weapons, which were a revolver and a semi-automatic pistol.
Donaldson asked other Volusia County deputies how he should dispose of the guns, officials say, but after learning one of the guns was stolen, they say Calkins and Donaldson made up a story about where the weapons came from.
The day after Donaldson wrote up a fabricated report about how an elderly woman found them in the bushes outside her home, officials say Donaldson resigned after his supervisor and other deputies became suspicious and contacted the FDLE.
Because the charges are misdemeanors, Calkins and Donaldson were given an October notice to appear in court. The Office of the State Attorney, Seventh Judicial Circuit, will prosecute the case.