Florida Mayor Charles Burkett attacks police for their treatment of ‘terrified’ Gisele Bündchen during traffic stop

American news

By Nicholas McEntire

A Florida mayor has called out the police officer who pulled over troubled Gisele Bundchen for his approach after the supermodel complained about being followed by paparazzi.

Surfside Mayor Charles Burkett said Wednesday’s interaction between the unidentified policeman and Bündchen was “completely unacceptable” and did not reflect what residents expect from police because the officer showed a “dismissive attitude.”

“Yesterday I was dismayed to watch a video conversation of one of our residents talking to one of our police officers,” Burkett wrote in a letter to Surfside Interim Police Chief Henry Dossey obtained by WPLG.

“As one watches the video, it becomes clear very quickly that the resident is distressed and scared. “The frightened resident told the Surfside officer she believed she was being followed by a stalker and that she was scared.”

Bodycam footage showed that the officer dismissed the mother of two’s safety concerns and referred her to the Miami Beach Police Department.

Bündchen, 43, told the officer she was “just trying to stay (away) from that guy,” referring to the suspicious paparazzo before she was pulled over.

“There’s nothing I can do about it,” the officer said, before telling him to “file a report in Miami Beach.”

The officer let Bündchen off with a “courtesy” before making the horrific confession.

“I’m so tired,” said an emotional Bündchen. “Wherever I go I have these royal people following me. Nothing protects me. I can’t do anything. I just want to live my life.

The policeman told her, “I can’t stop them from doing their job, which is to take pictures,” to which she replied, “I don’t know how that’s allowed.”

The frustrated mayor reminded the department what their main duties were and that they were not featured in roadside conversations.

“This response is completely unacceptable and does not reflect the values, judgment and service that residents expect from their police,” Burkett wrote. “On the contrary, the foremost job of our police department is to keep our residents safe!”

“This dismissive attitude toward a resident who is clearly in distress is everything we do not want to see in the way we interact with our police and serve our residents.”

The unidentified policeman, who admitted to recognizing Bündchen, said there was nothing he could have done to stop the paparazzi.

Burkett said the conversation with Bündchen reminded him of a meeting with city police union boss Tammy Campbell, who encouraged him to attend a meeting where he asked the department to “increase patrols and engage with residents. Local politicians were attacked for requesting “to join”.

“What I saw in that video and the actions of the Surfside union boss at our recent meeting indicate that the previous command staff leadership and union leadership have lost their mission,” Burkett said. “We are all counting on you to refocus our police department’s primary mission on serving our residents.”

Ducey acknowledged that the officer should have stopped differently after seeing Bündchen in distress, but he insisted that the policeman was a good man.

“I would have liked to see more empathy in the initial contact on what was going on,” the police chief told Local 10 News.

“A lot of people I’ve talked to in Surfside say this officer is a great officer, “He’s phenomenal.”

“Could we have done better? I think it’s a learning opportunity to understand the dynamics of that situation.

It’s unclear whether Bündchen has filed a report with authorities.

Surfside police told Page Six that Bündchen was stopped for a traffic violation.