A police officer in St. Petersburg has been put under arrest amid an investigation into his alleged sharing of confidential information with a man accused of planting explosive devices at a casino
A St. Petersburg, Florida, police officer has been arrested following an investigation into his alleged sharing of confidential law enforcement data with a man later accused of planting explosive devices at Tampa’s Seminole Hard Rock Casino.
The Casino Bomb Scare
Officer Brandon Klaiber, 40, was taken into custody after authorities discovered he had used restricted police databases to provide sensitive information to Bryan Eckley, the suspect charged in the 2024 casino bomb scare.
Klaiber now faces two counts of offenses against intellectual property, both third-degree felonies.
Eckley was arrested in October 2024, accused of placing two makeshift explosive devices inside restrooms at the casino.
According to investigators, one of the devices was found near a gas line, and both could have caused serious injuries had they detonated.
A bomb squad was able to safely disarm them. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) later described the devices as “fireworks-based” and remotely operable, though the motive behind the incident remains unclear.
Friends for 15 Years
Text messages reviewed by FDLE revealed Klaiber, who was sworn in as a police officer in 2008, had shared information that was sourced from confidential law enforcement systems with Eckley.
“He would use the confidential database system here at the police department, it’s only for law enforcement use,” said chief Anthony Holloway.
The two had been friends for roughly 15 years, Holloway said, and Eckley would occasionally ask Klaiber to run checks, often on license plates or personal records.
“It was, ‘Hey, can you do this for me, can you do that for me,’” Holloway said. “To my knowledge, I’m not sure if it’s related to anything that happened at the Hard Rock”, added the chief.
Klaiber has been suspended without pay and placed on administrative leave since early December 2024.
All of his access to police systems was revoked at that time. An internal administrative investigation is also underway through the department’s Office of Professional Standards.
Authorities are now reviewing every database query Klaiber made to determine whether those lookups were tied to legitimate investigations or personal favors.
“I am very disappointed at this officer for giving away that trust,” Holloway said.
“Just a Firework”
Eckley, who owns a roofing company, was already out on bail for unrelated charges involving aggravated assault and discharging a firearm on residential property when the judge in the bomb case set a bond of $100,000.
According to his attorney, Anthony Rickman, the judge decided to revoke Klaiber’s bond in that case.
At the end of the month, he was released from a Hillsborough County jail on a $200,000 bail after a judge determined the evidence in the explosives case didn’t warrant indefinite detention at the end of the month.
Rickman explained that the state was not able to determine “it was anything more than just a firework,” which is not legally considered a destructive device.
His case remains open and pending. Last August, Hollywood Park Casino in Inglewood, California, also faced a similarly scary bomb threat incident. Luckily, the casino was shortly declared a safe spot as there were no clear indications of an actual bomb on the premises.
