Video: Two Hillsborough County Sheriff’s colonels resign amid academic cheating allegations.
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A captain with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office was fired Wednesday over academic cheating allegations.
The sheriff’s office confirmed Capt. Zuly Stearns was terminated due to the ongoing internal investigation, which has resulted in several other top officials resigning.
Stearns served as the Commander of the Communications Bureau and Records Division, according to the sheriff office website.
A spokesperson for the agency said Sheriff Chad Chronister will not be making any additional comments until the investigation is complete.
The internal investigation began over the summer after former Chief Deputy Anthony Collins admitted to academically cheating while at the National FBI Academy.
Emails obtained by 8 On Your Side show Collins corresponded with a man named Robert Roush to complete his coursework. Collins submitted his resignation just fourth months after his historic promotion.
The investigation then turned to other top officials who were also accused of hiring Roush to write research papers and other reports.
Col. Christopher Rule, Col. Michael Hannaford and Capt. Lora Rivera all have since stepped down.
Major James Jackson, who was the district commander of court operations, also resigned earlier in October. However, the sheriff’s office said the investigation into Jackson is “unrelated to any cheating on FBI coursework.”
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