When it comes to street racing enforcement, Florida’s Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno has been crystal clear about his “zero tolerance” policy. Unfortunately for him, a viral video suggests his own driving habits tell a rather different story of hypocrisy. One involving a $250,000 Lamborghini Huracan Spyder and some questionable decision-making on public roads.
The controversy began when Marceno issued a press release in early June following the arrest of an 18-year-old street racer, emphasizing his department’s tough stance on reckless driving. “Driving at excessive speed and putting yourself, your passengers, and others on the road at risk is an incredibly selfish decision,” Marceno wrote, warning that violators would face “Motel Marceno.”
However, a video allegedly filmed by his friend Ken Romano tells a different story. The footage shows what appears to be Sheriff Marceno behind the wheel of a black Lamborghini Huracan Spyder, engaging in a highway race against a Corvette. The Corvette reaches 74 mph in the 50 mph zone while failing to catch the Lamborghini, which is clearly much faster.
The timing couldn’t be more ironic. Marceno has repeatedly taken hard public stances on street racing, posting about enforcement operations on the Lee County Sheriff’s Office Facebook account multiple times this year. The department even shared bodycam footage from a massive operation against street racers, which resulted in 67 traffic stops, 74 citations, and nine arrests.
The sheriff’s apparent hypocrisy has drawn criticism from locals, many of whom expressed little surprise at the revelation on social media. The video surfaced on Facebook late last year, though it only gained widespread attention when the Florida Trident published it recently. Marceno currently serves his second full term as Lee County Sheriff, with his salary increasing from $178,000 to $261,000 since 2021. The Lamborghini Huracan Spyder, valued between $200,000 and $260,000, raises questions about the sheriff’s finances, though ownership hasn’t been confirmed.
This incident highlights the ongoing scrutiny of law enforcement accountability and the expectation that officers uphold the same standards they enforce on civilians. Whether Marceno will face consequences for his alleged love for speed (whilst not paying the price for speeding) remains to be seen, but the video has certainly highlighted his hypocrisy.
