🌟𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐒𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐃𝐀𝐘🌟
𝚂𝙲𝙷𝙾𝙾𝙻 𝚃𝙷𝚁𝙴𝙰𝚃 𝙴𝙽𝙵𝙾𝚁𝙲𝙴𝙼𝙴𝙽𝚃 𝚃𝙴𝙰𝙼 𝙳𝙴𝚃𝙴𝙲𝚃𝙸𝚅𝙴: 𝙰𝚄𝚂𝚃𝙸𝙽 𝙲𝙰𝙽𝙵𝙸𝙴𝙻𝙳

LCSO’s School Threat Enforcement Team is often called the busiest unit in the agency. Investigating about five threats each week, along with frequent callouts, and follow-up work, it’s a hectic schedule that suits Detective Austin Canfield just fine.

“I love to work and I love learning new things,” he said. “The work we do in STET is stressful and can keep us up at night, but I’ve always liked being challenged.”

As its name implies, STET investigates school threats throughout Lee County Schools. The unit includes a lieutenant, two sergeants, six detectives, and three threat assessment coordinators.

Sheriff Carmine Marceno created STET in December 2021 to address the growing issue of threats being made to schools, particularly online. STET is responsible for conducting all felony investigations at Lee County schools, school buses, and school bus stops, especially those related to school threats.

STET works closely with school administrators, school resource officers, and partner agencies to investigate and respond to threats against Lee County schools, students, or teachers.

Canfield, who was born in Chicago, Illinois, relocated with his family to Southwest Florida when he was 12 years old. After graduating from Bishop Verot High School in 2012, he scraped together some money and took a two-month backpacking trip through Europe. Austin visited the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy and England.

Upon returning, he began attending college in Key West while majoring in criminal justice. “I was sort of following the family tradition because my grandfather was in law enforcement in Indiana, and my father is with LCSO,” he explained. “But I didn’t finish college. It’s not really fair to put a college in Key West where there are so many great distractions like fishing, boating, and the nightlife. I enjoyed all of those.”

In 2017, Canfield sponsored himself through the Southwest Florida Public Service Academy and was hired as a Sanibel Island Police traffic aide. After about nine

months he was hired by LCSO and went through the crossover academy to become a Corrections Officer.

He began working nights in intake at the main jail in 2018. “It was a great to learn how to communicate with the inmates and learn the statutes,” Canfield said. “I also learned how to manage people better and that was very beneficial.”

In 2020, Canfield moved to road patrol in the 2nd Precinct. He became the primary night Field Training Officer before leaving in 2024 to join STET.

“Since joining the agency it was my goal to make Detective,” he noted. “I didn’t finish college or have a military background, so I knew I would have to make a good name for myself by working hard to earn any promotions. That’s always been the way I looked at it: No one will outwork me.”

With STET a couple of cases stand out for Det. Canfield. One was a 14-year-old student who had written a manifesto, had a date picked out, and was making plans for a school shooting. Working with the FBI on the case, the student was arrested following an investigation.

Another case from last year involved a sixth-grade student who was planning an attack on his middle school in Lehigh Acres. “He had a plan, maps, and was putting together everything ready to go,” Det. Canfield recalled. “It was a tragic situation. His mother had committed suicide in front of him; his grandmother had just passed away, and his one online friend in a chat room turned out to be an adult posing as a kid while grooming him to do the attack.”

Det. Canfield said In both of those cases, the youngsters have made progress in the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice and are turning their lives around.

Away from work Austin and his wife, Bailey, enjoy spending time with their two boys ages 4 and 2. It’s mainly outdoor activities like fishing, hiking, and bicycle riding. The family also likes to travel and recently returned from a vacation in Jamaica. ... See MoreSee Less

Another success story from the dedicated work of Sheriff Carmine Marceno’s Animal Cruelty Task Force! Happy 5th Birthday, Saint.

LCSO’s Animal Cruelty Task Force continues to set the standard for animal cruelty investigations. This renowned unit works tirelessly to protect those who cannot protect themselves and hold offenders accountable. We’re incredibly grateful to see how many lives have been changed for the better because of the dedication, compassion, and tireless efforts of the ACTF team. 🌟💚🐾🦴 ... See MoreSee Less

Another successful weekend of #teamLCSO’s Teen Driver Challenge is in the books! 👏🛣️🌟🚘

This group of teens completed both the classroom and practical portions of the program, helping them become more aware and confident on our busy roads. They gained valuable safety tips and defensive driving skills alongside our awesome team of deputies. We’re proud of their commitment to becoming safer, more responsible drivers!

𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐣𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 & 𝐟𝐮𝐧 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞? 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐮𝐩𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬! 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 & 𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐮𝐩 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞:https://leesyal.org/registration/ ... See MoreSee Less