JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office corrections officer was arrested and is being accused of domestic battery, Sheriff T.K. Waters announced Friday during a press conference.
Romeo Kei, who has worked for JSO for two and a half years, was arrested Thursday evening following a domestic dispute, police said.
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According to JSO, Kei and another family member had minor visible injuries following the incident.
Police said both Kei and the family member admitted they had engaged in a physical fight. However, they each claimed that the other one had been the initial aggressor. The family member was also arrested for domestic battery.
JSO did not release the identity of the family member.
Waters said there were children present in the home at the time of the incident but none of the children were harmed.
Following his arrest, Kei has been removed from his authority as a corrections officer and placed on administrative leave as JSO conducts its internal investigation.
“Whenever this happens, our collective belief in openness and transparency, and accountability outweighs personal allegiance to JSO employees or anyone for that matter,” Waters said. “No one is above the law.”
Kei made his first appearance in court Friday morning and pleaded no contest to a reduced charge of fighting. Adjudication was withheld, and he is in the process of being released.
This marks the first arrest of a JSO employee by the agency in 2024.