Cop loses digital list of informants

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - They trusted police to protect them after giving up sensitive information. Now, some drug informants might wonder why they helped. Altamonte Springs Police say one of their own lost a confidential list of the department's drug informants, when a lieutenant misplaced a flash drive.

Some fear the misplaced flash drive could put people who trusted police in danger. Police issued this statement: "We are aware of this information and are currently looking into the matter."

Sources say the lieutenant transferred the informants list from his work computer at police headquarters to a flash drive to take it home. The problem is he left the drive on top of his car or on his bumper, and it fell off while he drove away.

Altamonte resident Akasha Coutur call this sloppy police work for such an important list.  "Losing your math homework is not that big of a deal, but that is putting peoples lives on the line almost."

Police are not saying if anyone picked up the flash drive or how many names or cases it contains. Some say the mistake could make informants less likely to help, fearing retaliation on the streets.

Local resident Jules Silvers says the informants could be in danger. "If they don't have informants, they cant find out any information about the drugs, so that just means the dealers and everybody are going to run rampant," says Silvers.

The police chief will have to decide if the mistake leads to an internal investigation.

Silvers says the mistake could cause informants to clam up. "People are going to be afraid to come out and speak and talk about things if they have to sit up and wonder if their information is going to get lost and someone's going to find them, and now they don't know if somebody's looking for them."

As of Monday night, the police department's public information officer and the city's mayor had not returned our phone calls requesting more information on the story.

FOX 35 News knows the name of the Lieutenant in question, but we are not revealing it because he is under cover. We are told he is well liked and is ready to retire soon.