A former Miccosukee police officer accused of forcing two teens to strip naked and run down a secluded road in the Everglades during a 2016 traffic stop was convicted Thursday on four felony charges.
A jury found 30-year-old Michael Martinez guilty of two counts each of extortion and unlawful compensation, the Broward State Attorney's Office said.
Martinez had pulled the two teens over after they ran a stop sign on Aug. 5, 2016. After he found a small amount of marijuana in the car, he told the teens to follow him down a secluded road, then told them they'd go to jail if they didn't strip naked.
Once they were naked, Martinez forced the teens to run down the road, then tried to get the teen girl to perform a sex act on him, prosecutors said. The victims, who were 18 at the time, said they felt they had no option but to do what Martinez said.
Martinez faces up to 60 years in prison at sentencing, scheduled for Nov. 25.
