Deputy fired in connection with attempted murder investigation

After being the subject of an internal investigation for several weeks, a Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office deputy was terminated Wednesday.

Carson Plank’s alleged involvement with former deputy Frankie Bybee has been the subject of an Internal Affairs investigation for several weeks. The investigation wrapped up Wednesday, with termination as its recommendation.

Plank had been on administrative leave after she was charged with tampering with physical evidence earlier this month. She had previously been arrested on Feb. 9 and charged with providing false information to law enforcement during an investigation.

The charges stem from Plank being the first responding deputy to an investigation of attempted murder allegations against Bybee on Jan. 12. She was responsible for initiating the investigation, however, she allegedly ignored the victim’s report and physical evidence to cover up the crime, according to the sheriff’s office.

Bybee was charged with attempted murder on Jan. 23 along with several other charges after he allegedly tried to make the attempted murder look like a suicide.

In a text to Bybee on Jan. 12, Plank wrote, “Frankie, she said you tried to kill her.” She texted him again three minutes later saying, “... we squashed it,” according to the sheriff’s office. There was also a photo found on Plank’s phone that showed blood and hair evidence that was not submitted or disclosed to detectives, according to the sheriff’s office.

Bybee was terminated from his position with the sheriff’s office Jan. 31.

This story was originally published May 24, 2017 at 5:18 PM with the headline "Deputy fired in connection with attempted murder investigation."