BIO: RENE GUTIERREZ

Senior Instructor

Rene Gutierrez’s law enforcement career has spanned more than 30 years.  He began working in 1989 with the Florida Highway Patrol in Pasco County, Florida.  In 1990, he accepted a position with the City of Hialeah Gardens Police Department (HGPD), a suburb of Miami, Florida.  Mr. Gutierrez began with HGPD as a uniformed patrol officer before he was promoted to the General Investigations Unit and then to Sergeant, where he supervised a squad of patrol officers.

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In 1996, Mr. Gutierrez accepted a position with the neighboring City of Hialeah Police Department (HPD).  In this capacity, he worked for more than 10 years in the Patrol Division.  He was then promoted to the Background Investigations Unit for 4 years and then to the Internal Affairs Division for another 4.

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The HPD began coordinating with the City of Hialeah Housing Authority (HHA), one of the largest Public Housing Authorities in Florida.  Mr. Gutierrez was assigned to work with the HHA conducting investigations into fraud within their Housing Choice Voucher, Public Housing, and Affordable Housing programs.  In this capacity, Mr. Gutierrez retired from the HPD in 2014, but continued to work with the HHA as a Fraud Investigator.  He has conducted hundreds of investigations ranging from administrative program violations to complex criminal frauds and employee misconduct. The Housing Program Frauds he has investigated included undisclosed income or information, unauthorized tenants, and landlord frauds.  Mr. Gutierrez has conducted numerous arrests for housing fraud, which have resulted in termination from the program and restitution being ordered to the HHA.