LONGWOOD, Fla. – Personnel records for a former Longwood police officer show he violated department policy once before he resigned in the middle of an internal investigation.
News 6 first reported on the incident in June, after Longwood police said Corporal Virgel Quintal had chosen to leave the department while a review into his actions during a call to a home in May was still ongoing.
[VIDEO: Longwood officer resigns as investigators look into incident with teen]
Friday, the department released their findings and stated the investigation resulted in 10 sustained violations of the Longwood Police Department’s response to resistance and standards of conduct policies.
What do we know about Quintal’s past?
A personnel file obtained by News 6 shows Quintal was disciplined for his actions after a traffic stop in July 2024. Correspondence from the chief of police states after a driver failed to stop at a stop sign, Quintal “inappropriately engaged in a vehicle pursuit and continued to do so after being instructed to stop.”
Following a formal investigation, the chief agreed that Quintal had sustained violations of enforcement policy and while he may have believed his response to the driver taking off was with “good intention,” a pursuit was “not appropriate and most certainly violated the pursuit criteria.”
The documents show Quintal was suspended without pay for two workdays and was ordered to complete training on the department’s pursuit policy and take a risk reduction course. He was also warned that any similar future violations would lead to “progressive discipline.”
Before Quintal was hired by the Longwood Police Department, he was employed as a deputy at the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. News 6 also reviewed records from his time there, and learned there were no disciplinary files, but notes taken during an employee evaluation stated he had joined a pursuit in 2015 “without getting on the radio or advising he was involved at all” and “later seemed to have tunnel vision during the incident.”
What do we know about the incident in May 2025?
An incident report obtained by News 6 shows Cpl. Quintal was one of three officers called to family’s home just before 9 p.m. on May 27, 2025 during an argument.
[VIDEO: Bodycam video shows former Longwood police officer confront teen]
The report describes a then 17-year-old was arguing with his parents about using his cell phone and wanting to move out of state. It indicated he made statements about possibly harming himself, so the teen was handcuffed and transported to South Seminole Hospital for an evaluation.
What does the body camera video show?
Body camera video of the police response to the family’s home shows at the time Cpl. Quintal arrived on scene the teen was calm but “visibly upset.”
A statement from Chief David Dowda says Cpl. Quintal’s firm attitude “initially seemed to be an attempt to set boundaries” but “quickly became unprofessional and agitated the situation.”
Cpl. Quintal can be heard making statement such as “shut up and listen” and “you don’t have to be scared of me. If I wanted you to be scared of me you would be scared of me.”
At one point, Cpl. Quintal is seen in the video putting his hand up to the boy’s face and when the teen tells him to move his hand away the officer replies, “what are you going to do about it.? The teen is then heard saying, “If I didn’t have these handcuffs on, I promise you.”
Cpl. Quintal is heard telling another officer to remove the handcuffs, and then he states “do you want to fight me?”
The confrontation escalated further when Cpl. Quintal and another officer walked the teen to a patrol car. Once at the vehicle, body camera video shows Cpl. Quintal appear to push the teen up against the car. He states, “stop pushing back.”
When the teen tries to push his body off the vehicle, documents detailing what Cpl. Quintal’s body camera shows state he “forces” the teens head back against the car two more times.
The teen is taken to the ground, where Cpl. Quintal states “try it again.”
A view from another officer’s body camera then shows Cpl. Quintal’s hand on the teen’s neck in a “choking motion,” according to the documents. At that time, another officer removes Quintal’s hand as the teen yells “get your hand off me.”
The teen is eventually placed into the back of the patrol car and can be heard making statements about physical assault and pressing charges.
What did the department’s internal investigation find?
Documents released by the Longwood Police Department state Cpl. Quintal violated policy when he failed to deescalate the situation, and the tactics he appears to use during the takedown is not “taught in defensive tactics” or in the department’s “response to resistance policy.” They also state his conduct violated the department’s code of ethics.
The investigation resulted in a total of 10 sustained violations.
While the internal review is complete, the results have been sent to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Criminal Justice Standards and Training Commission for additional evaluation.
In a statement, Chief David Dowda praised the actions of the two other officers who also responded to the scene including one who “had the character and fortitude to stop Virgel Quintal’s actions by physically intervening to prevent any harm.”
Both officers reported the incident, which the chief says ensured the complaint was properly reviewed.
News 6 spoke to the teen’s mother who said that she is in agreement with the police department’s findings. She previously told our crew that the family has had interactions before with the Longwood Police Department that have been positive. She called it an isolated incident and said it does not reflect Longwood as a whole.
“The way it’s being handled I think is a reflection of the police department,” she told our News 6 team earlier this month. “Because they do admit and say this is not how we want to be, and I think that’s what we expect from them....This is what we expect from our police department that they do admit when things could have been done better.”