23-054 Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office Child Protection Investigator Arrested For Falsifying Official Records

Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office
Investigative Operations Bureau
-Child Protection Division

Jennifer De Jesus (Employee – Arrested)
Age: 38
Date of Hire: 4/12/2021
Charges: One Count Falsifying Official Records

PINELLAS COUNTY - Detectives have arrested a Child Protection Investigator (CPI) of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office following an investigation of falsifying official records.

According to detectives, on April 12, 2023, a Child Protection Investigator Supervisor noticed discrepancies in a child abuse investigation that was being conducted by 38-year-old CPI Jennifer De Jesus. The case required law enforcement response to a daycare due to the allegations. CPI De Jesus advised her supervisor that the St. Petersburg Police Department responded with her to a daycare to conduct the investigation. Her supervisor advised her to input the information into her report and to include the police report number.

Detectives say the St. Petersburg Police report number that CPI De Jesus’ provided was not a valid report number and did not reflect the child abuse investigation. Detectives also verified that the St. Petersburg Police Department did not respond to the daycare with CPI De Jesus. CPI supervisors spoke to CPI De Jesus on multiple occasions, asking her for a valid St. Petersburg Police report number and for the names of the officers who responded to the daycare with her. Each time, CPI De Jesus became nervous and stated she would gather the information for them; however, she did not provide a valid report number or names.

Throughout the course of the investigation, detectives learned that CPI De Jesus provided fabricated case numbers and lied about requesting the St. Petersburg Police Department to respond to the daycare with her. During the follow-up investigations conducted by Child Protection Investigators, it was verified that none of the children involved in these investigations suffered harm due to the misconduct by De Jesus.

On Tuesday, April 19, 2023, De Jesus resigned and she was arrested at the Sheriff’s Administration Building, located at 10750 Ulmerton Road in Largo. When detectives interviewed De Jesus, she admitted that she did not contact the St. Petersburg Police Department, and it was a false entry.

De Jesus was charged with One Count of Falsifying Records and transported to the Pinellas County Jail without incident.

The investigation continues.