We have a great collection of articles for It Could Be Worse. Actually
in some cases, it could only be worse if investigative TV reporters showed
up on the front steps or YOUR police department, asking questions about
evidence that was supposed to be in YOUR property room. Those articles
will be followed by a very humorous article from the Raleigh (NC) News
and Observer (unless you're from Chatham County), and closing with some
good press for the Police Department in The Augusta Chronicle about the
Aiken Department of Public Safety.
The News and Observer (Raleigh, NC)
State labor department investigators have fined the city $3,800 for safety violations stemming from a lack of space at the Police Department's downtown headquarters. The problems were in the property and evidence rooms and in an outside storage facility at the headquarters. City Manager Russell Allen said Monday that the city has requested a meeting to discuss the labor department findings and fines. The department began its inquiry after receiving two confidential complaints in early February. It received a third complaint on Feb. 17 and closed its investigation on Feb. 20. Investigators said they found cramped aisles and boxes stacked in front of exits and in passages that should have been kept clear. Police department employees were having to climb shelves rather than use a stepladder, Santos said. The department had not conducted regular fire drills as required or trained employees to use fire extinguishers. Inspectors also found ceiling tiles that were wet from a water leak, of which the source had not been determined, Santos said. "It was a matter of a municipality faced with overcrowding problems," Santos said. "It has very little space right now to store the items it needs to store." The city has until March 26 to fix the problems, and until April 16 to conduct a fire drill and extinguisher training, Santos said. Allen said the city plans to fix the problems, and he added that officials took the City Council to those very areas about three months ago during a tour to show overcrowded city office space. Last December, the council endorsed the broad outlines of a five-year
expansion plan that could include consolidating police and fire headquarters
on a new site and renovating the police building for other city offices.
Cincinnati Post
Officials from Ohio's Bureau of Criminal Investigation, as part of their investigation into money missing from the property room of the Hamilton County Prosecutor's office, now will audit a second property room. BCI will audit the property room used by Hamilton County court reporters, who record what is said in courtrooms and maintain evidence during trials. BCl officials asked for the audit "because of an outgrowth of the stuff that went on in the prosecutor's office," Court Administrator Mike Walton said. A former prosecutor' s employee, Pete Marshall, is the subject of a criminal investigation into $2,700 missing from the prosecutor's property room. He worked in the prosecutor's office during the administration of Prosecutor Joe Deters, who has denied that he is being investigated for possibly covering up the thefts. A special prosecutor was appointed to investigate the missing money and could bring charges this week. "They are down here auditing the prosecutor's (property room), so while they were here, they wanted to audit us," Walton said. "It's not a big deal." Because of "chain of custody" issues proof of who handled the evidence to show it hasn't been altered - Walton is asking probation officers to handle the evidence during the audit of the court reporters' property room. "(BCI officials) wanted me to provide people who will physically touch the contraband so they won't have to," Walton said. "Probation officers are sworn (law enforcement) officers." Walton met Tuesday morning with several probation officers seeking volunteers. Their duties during the audit - opening the evidence, while a video camera rolls, to show that the evidence listed in the records is what is in the files - will be in addition to their regular jobs and could require overtime pay. Walton has no idea how much it could cost. "BCI told me it could take a month. I don't think it's going to be anything near that long," Walton said. In the investigation of the prosecutor's property room, Deters admits
Hamilton County Sheriff s deputies have questioned him about money that
disappeared from a property room when he was Hamilton County prosecutor.
Sources have told The Post that officials are investigating if Deters may
have covered up the theft. Deters has hired two high-powered Cincinnati
criminal defense attorneys to defend him against possible allegations.
Detroit (MI) Free Press
He stole seized cocaine and sold it, U.S. attorney says. A federal grand jury has indicted a Detroit police civilian employee for stealing nearly 223 pounds of cocaine over six years, selling it for $1.3 million and using the proceeds to buy houses for friends, family members and business associates. Eight other people were charged, including a Michigan State Police lieutenant. U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Collins said the main defendant is John Cole Sr., 50, of Detroit, who allegedly stole cocaine from the property room from 1994 through 2000. The stolen cocaine-which came from six police seizures over nine years -was replaced with flour, Collins said. Collins alleges that Cole sold all of the cocaine and made $1.3 million. Of that money, $500,000 was used to purchase 19 houses and commercial buildings, which were titled in different people's names, according to the indictment. "It is our position that this conduct is nothing short of appalling," Collins said at a news conference Wednesday. Detroit Police Chief Jerry Oliver, who joined the department in February, said he's doing what he can to improve security at the antiquated police headquarters building, which houses the property room. But without anew facility and computerized inventory systems, Oliver said he can't guarantee another theft couldn't occur. "I don't think you can walk off with 101 kilos of cocaine, but 1 do think property can come up missing, can be misplaced," said Oliver, who has added cameras to the property room. "Employees, if they had a desire to really get by the system, could get by the system. But 1 do think that the chance for them to get detected earlier is greater." Ernest Myatt, 49, of Belleville, a State Police lieutenant and polygraph operator, and Donald Hynes, 41, a retired Detroit police officer, were indicted on charges of money laundering and lying to a grand jury. Myatt and Hynes are alleged to have knowingly invested money in the properties bought with the drug profits. After arraignment in U.S. District Court on Wednesday, Hynes-who retired in 200l-was released on a $25,000 unsecured bond, but U.S. District Judge Steven Pepe ordered him to surrender his passport and to not leave the country. Hynes' attorney, Brian Dailey, said Hynes was arrested Wednesday morning. "My client is seeking a very vigorous defense, and that's what he'll get," Dailey said. Hynes spent the last years of his career working in the property room. He also worked at the front desk in police headquarters, checking individuals and IDs as they entered the building. Oliver, who took over as chief in February, offered encouragement to Detroiters. "We will once again retain and gain the confidence of this community in terms of a professional Police Department," he said. The remaining suspects charged with money laundering are all associates or relatives of John Cole Sr. The 89-page indictment, unsealed Wednesday, charges the suspects with 17 counts of conspiracy to distribute drugs, money laundering, conspiracy to obstruct justice, lying to a federal grand jury and conspiracy to steal, embezzle and intentionally convert police property. John Cole Sr. faces up to life in prison if convicted of the drug counts. The others face up to 20 years in prison and $500,000 - plus fines. The indicted delivery driver was responsible for receiving, storing and retrieving property room evidence, stole the drugs between 1994 and 2000. The drugs had been seized between March 1986 and June 1999. The indictment said Cole replaced some of the cocaine with unopened bags of Gold Medal flour in weights roughly equal to the cocaine that was taken. After taking the drugs, he allegedly sold it for more than $1.3 million, the indictment said. Cole used the money to buy 19 houses and commercial buildings that he listed in the names of his mother, brother, son, daughter and other codefendants to disguise his ownership of the property, the indictment said. Officials allege he also purchased two Chevrolet Corvettes, which he titled in the names of his brother, David Cole, and an associate, Lasenby. Cole will remain in the Wayne County Jail until at least today, when a detention hearing is scheduled. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Take said he will make a case as to Cole's risk of flight and danger to the community. Terry allegedly used her position as a bank teller to make cash transactions without having to fill out the required federal paperwork for transactions over $10,000. The indictment said Cole purchased one of the homes in Terry's name on a 30- year mortgage that he paid off in three weeks. It was unclear what role Myatt, the State Police lieutenant, played in the alleged scheme. He was described as John Cole's business partner. The indictment said John Cole purchased one of the homes in Myatt' s name. After being arraigned, Myatt was released on a $10,000 unsecured bond. His attorney, Larry Polk, would not comment on the charges. Hynes is accused of laundering some of the money through his bank account. Federal agents raided John Cole's home in the 5500 block of West Outer Drive in May 2001, and seized records for the purchases. John Cole, his brother, daughter, mother-in-law and Terry are accused of lying to a federal grand jury, which began investigating the thefts in May 2001. The indictment said they falsely testified that their own funds had been used to buy the houses. The indictment also accused John Cole of giving a .38-caliber derringer
that he had taken from the property room to Lasenby.
The Cincinnati (OH) Enquirer
A Butler County judge sentenced the former New Miami police chief Thursday to probation for dereliction of duty. Standing before Judge Keith Spaeth, Duane Pelfrey read from a prepared statement, admitting that he failed to perform some duties as chief, but denying any intentional wrongdoing. His statement began: "I'd like to apologize to the village of New Miami for letting them down in my administrative obligations. I was in over my head when it came to the property room." He also alleged it was "in disarray when I took office." Judge Spaeth said he considered Mr. Pelfrey, 36, an appropriate candidate for probation because he admitted his offense and because of his previous good record in law enforcement and his inexperience with administrative duties before becoming chief in January. The judge suspended a 90-day jail sentence on the condition that Mr. Pelfrey complete two years of probation Mr. Pelfrey also must complete 40 hours of community service and pay a $250 fine plus court costs. "Good luck, sir," the judge said. Mr. Pelfrey, who maintained his composure in the courtroom, reluctantly spoke to reporters afterward. With reddened eyes and a trembling voice, he said, "It's been a terrible feeling. It's been a sick feeling." He said "bad management skills," inexperience with supervisory duties, lack of manpower and a budget crunch contributed to his downfall, yet he hoped to get back into law enforcement some day. His lawyer, Lyn Cunningham, said the ex-chief is employed in construction. "He's actually out digging ditches these days to earn a living to support his family." Mr. Cunningham said his client has been "extremely embarrassed" by the situation. Mr. Pelfrey had pleaded guilty to the second-degree misdemeanor July 12 for failing to properly inventory evidence. Critics had alleged that the chief may have improperly removed a gun from the property room, but Mr. Pelfrey on Thursday adamantly declared: "I never took anything from that property room." Mr. Pelfrey's court appearance capped months of controversy in the village of about 2,500 just north of Hamilton. In April, five teens had been accused of conspiring to kill Mr. Pelfrey.
But when that case fell apart in May, the teens' parents and others criticized
the chief s handling of the investigation and other matters. That led to
an investigation of the property room by the county sheriff s office.
San Antonio (TX) Express-News
A former drug task force member and three other San Antonio men were charged Tuesday in connection with the theft of 70 pounds of cocaine from the storage facility of the 8Ist Judicial District Narcotics Task Force. Edward Arthur Moreno was a member of the task force, which covers Atascosa, Frio, Kames and Wilson counties, until Oct. 31,2001. Less than a week before, on Oct. 25, 2001, 70 pounds of cocaine was stolen from the storage facility in Wilson County in a late-night burglary. The burglars used pry bars and bolt cutters to get into the building and vault where the drugs were stored. Moreno and Samuel M. Guebara were arrested Tuesday without incident. Juan Daniel Gonzales Jr. and Darryl Craig De la Cruz had agreed to surrender Tuesday afternoon and their arrests were being coordinated with their attorneys, said Wilson County Sheriff Joe Tackitt. "The investigation is still ongoing," said state Department of Public Safety Captain Patrick O'Burke. "We still have some very active leads we are pursuing. This is just a good start so far." Moreno was arrested at the Guadalupe County Jail, where he works as a corrections officer. Guebara also has previous police experience as an officer for the Somerset Police Department, O'Burke said. O'Burke said all four men live in San Antonio and all are in their 30's, although he did not have their dates of birth. All four men are charged with conspiracy to distribute in excess of 5 kilograms of cocaine. O'Burke said each man faces at least 10 years on each charge. Tackitt said it hurt to see former police officers arrested on drug charges. "You hold them to a higher standard, so it's very disappointing." Tackitt said Moreno was notified that he was being terminated from his
job in September 2001. The 70 pounds of cocaine was seized in a drug raid,
but charges against the suspect were dropped after the burglary because
the drugs were needed for evidence, Tackitt said. The stolen cocaine was
never recovered.
Yahoo! News / Reuters
Burglars broke into a police station in the northern French city of
Lille and stole 15 guns along with cannabis, heroin and cocaine, police
sources said. Using a blowtorch and aided by a faulty security alarm that
failed to go off, the burglars cut through metal bars on the window of
the police investigation headquarters during Sunday night. As well as guns
and drugs, they took money and were believed to have stolen police uniforms,
the sources said.
Hartford (CN) Courant
A year after top city officials said a lengthy audit of the police department property room came up clean, a new study by the city's auditor has found that as much as $280,000 in cash cannot be located in the police vault. The unaccounted- for money, from open court cases going back 14 years, could be a result of bad record keeping, or theft, or a combination. City officials said there may never be an answer on some of the older cases. In an Oct. 15 memo to the city manager, H. Patrick Campbell, the city's chief auditor, said police department leaders were told of the extent of the missing money in February. But "it appears that no action has been taken to investigate and follow up on open cases that appear to have money missing from the vault." Top city leaders Thursday promised again to reform the department's property room within six months. "I will expect nothing less," said Deputy Mayor Louis Watkins. The new promises come a year and a month after Robert S. Rudewicz, the acting police chief at the time, said he was convinced that "nothing whatsoever" was missing from the department's vault after a preliminary audit. At the time, City Manager Saundra Kee Borges attributed much of the concern about missing money to a "communications problem" between city leaders and state judicial officials. Earlier last year, the chief state's attorney and judicial officials set off a scandal by alleging that the Hartford Police Department did not destroy or turn over guns, drugs and $667, 131 in cash as required. The accusations led, in part, to the demotion of acting Police Chief Deborah Barrows after state officials complained that she ignored warning after warning about the problems. At the time, city and police leaders promised quick reform of the department's procedures, including a new, automated tracking system. But little appears to have been done in the past 13 months. The report found that although auditors developed and drafted new policies to ensure that the department's inventory of drugs, cash, guns and property are well documented, "no action has been taken" to implement them. There is still no automated system, Campbell wrote. In fact, the department seems to be falling back into its old, bad habits, according to the audit. Although some progress has been made, especially in clearing up the backlog, the department is still processing court orders "sporadically and in an untimely manner in many instances." Instead of monthly "bums" to destroy confiscated drugs, the department has scheduled only two of them in the past 10 months, the audit said. In response to the problems in Hartford, a state law that took effect Oct. 1 requires police departments to comply with court orders by returning cash or property and destroying guns and narcotics within 90 days. Last year, state Superior Court officials said the city police owed them $350,000 in cash that was not turned over. In the end, according to the latest audit, slightly more than $9,000 was left in dispute. Earlier this year, the city cut a check from its insurance accounts after the money could not be found. As part of that audit, Campbell conducted an intensive review, examining every open case in the property room's records - 2,769 cases stretching back 14 years. That's when he and his staff identified the additional unaccounted for cash, a total of $271,000. In a detailed review of 30 open cases, Campbell found that 75 percent of the cash had been handled properly but recorded incorrectly in department logs. Still, Watkins, the deputy mayor, said he was surprised and disappointed by the latest audit. He said he relied on the assurances by police officials last year that everything was on track as far as any missing money. "There is no way a council member or the mayor can go down to the vault and check it out ourselves," he said. Police Chief Bruce P. Marquis, who took over six months after the scandal, declined to comment on the auditor's findings Thursday, saying through a department spokesman that he had not had a chance to review the report. Lt. Neil Dryfe, the department spokesman, emphasized that creating a more efficient property room has been a high priority for Marquis since he took over the department last December. "We know that a lot of concerns have been raised about this issue, and we are doing everything in our power to address those concerns," Dryfe said. Since Marquis arrived in December, he has placed as many as four officers in the property room to help clear up the backlog. Sgt. Michael Drew, who had been in charge of the property room in 1999 and 2000, was transferred out of that division into the detention division when last year's scandal was made public. He has since been transferred back to the property room. Three weeks ago, Sgt. Mark Rudewicz, the cousin of the former acting police chief, took charge of the property room. Marquis placed oversight of the property room in the hands of new Assistant Police Chief Lester McKoy on Aug. 1. Deputy City Manager James F. Wright, who is Marquis' boss, defended the chief, saying the property room is just one of many pressing priorities for him. This summer, Marquis was dealing with a crime wave that required state
police to come in to help patrol city streets. The joint patrols dramatically
increased the amount of money, drugs and guns that Hartford police seized
as evidence and deposited in the property room. "He walked into a situation
that was a grand mess," Wright said. "He hasn't been sitting on his thumbs.
This is just one of a number of issues he inherited."
The News and Observer (Raleigh, NC)
Good morning, and welcome to America's highest - not highest-rated, just highest - TV game show: "Whose Dope Is It Anyway?" That's not really a TV show, but it is one of the questions the feds and Chatham County residents have been trying to answer since 5,000 pounds of marijuana went "POOF" in 2000. They want to know not only to whom the confiscated weed belonged, but also where it went. You might recall that some of it disappeared from a truck behind the sheriff s office and a ton -yes, a ton of it was removed from the landfill where sheriff s deputies are said to have buried it allegedly so drug dealers couldn't get their filthy hands on it. Don't look so skeptical. It makes perfect sense - or it would after a few tokes of some really good stuff - to bury 2,000 pounds of dope (approximate street value, $ 2 million) 4 feet deep in an unguarded county landfill. "There, that'll keep it away from our kids, and no one will ever think to look in here," they probably said while tossing the last shovel full of dirt onto it. Chatham County residents, after learning of such highly sophisticated drug interdiction efforts, must be wondering, "Who's in charge here: Cheech and Chong?" The dope missing from the truck and the landfill has already influenced the political landscape in Chatham County: When Sheriff Ike Gray announced that he was running for election to the office - he was appointed in December 2000 to succeed an ailing Donald Whitt - he was accompanied, not in time-tested political fashion by his adoring wife, kids and dog, but by his attorney. The attorney was there to answer questions about the missing pot and about a lawsuit filed by a former deputy. Gray was chief deputy when the drugs disappeared, and he is being sued by Dan Phillips, who said he was fired by Gray for-among other things-blowing the whistle about the missing pot. Proving that he can follow orders, Gray refused to answer any questions about how the ganja got gone. His only response on the subject was, "The FBI is still doing an ongoing investigation. They anticipate some closure in the near future." Gray is being challenged by county Commissioner Rick Givens and is apparently hoping Chatham County voters have short memories, will forget about the cannabis reported missing on his watch and keep him in office. Givens could face an uphill battle, especially if Gray tells voters, "I've already shown I can make dope - er, I mean the dope problem - disappear." After all this time, the trail has definitely grown cold, and the smoke has cleared. No one but an expert criminologist would know what to look for in tracking down the purloined pot. That's why I drove down yesterday to lend my expertise to solving this caper. Since my trained nose couldn't pick up the pungent scent I sought, I
decided to follow the only promising lead I found - a trail of empty Doritos
bags, Snickers wrappers and Ho-Ho packs: I figured that whoever stole 5,000
pounds of pot must've had an awesome case of the munchies afterwards. Alas,
the trail of litter led me to where the pot - and the litter - should've
been: the county landfill.
The Augusta Chronicle
It's a drunken man's paradise. It's an armory. And it is home to the how and what of Aiken crimes. In two small tucked-away rooms, the Aiken Department of Public Safety's evidence chambers hold things criminals wished didn't exist. The hallway that leads to the bigger of the two rooms sets the tone. "There's tons of beer in here," said Dwayne Courtney, Aiken's chief investigator, whose department oversees evidence, as he passes a blue recycle bin full of wine bottles. Next to the box, stacked five high, are boxes of Heineken. Next to them, a stack of Coors Light, with Miller Lite on the side. All confiscated, most will end up for sale. Shelves 8 feet high hold paper bags of stolen credit cards and tools of the criminal trade. Paper allows evidence to breathe, Investigator Courtney said. What can't fit in bags is a story in itself. A basket full of faded rose petals. A metal detector. A floor jack. A half-empty bottle of Smirnoff. The room is filling, and soon the agency will have to search for more space to hold the materials that get convictions. To help keep pace, the agency resells the alcohol to anyone with a beer or wine license. They also use confiscated money from drug crimes to buy drug-fighting tools. Guns are sent away to be melted down. Although things do pile up in this criminal library, the rooms don't catalog the full history of Aiken crime. Most evidence is kept for a short time - usually about 90 days after appeals for those convicted are exhausted. The national accreditation standards that govern the agency mandate that evidence be removed within six months after the courts have finished with a criminal trial, Investigator Courtney said. But homicide evidence is kept until the person convicted is dead or released from prison. Noticeable from the doorway are two boxes labeled "Jessica Carpenter," the teen who was slain last summer in her Aiken home. The smaller of the two rooms holds the items that need more security. There are boxes of guns, jewelry, cash and a cast-iron frying pan. The pan is from a homicide case, Investigator Courtney said. In this room is more alcohol- a clear liquid in a gallon jug - moonshine, Mr. Courtney explained. Evidence-handling at the agency is a strict process. Officers bring in evidence to an area similar to a bank deposit security box, located in an opening in the wall next to the evidence rooms. Only one person, a part-time evidence technician, has keys to that opening and to the rooms. For about a year, Melissa Odenthal has used a bar-coding system that has made locating evidence easier. The system is funded by a federal grant. Before the bar codes, evidence could be hard to find quickly. "We have had some tense moments," Investigator Courtney said. "But I don't know if we have ever lost an item of evidence." To make sure nothing comes up missing, about six random inspections are done every year. Evidence also is protected from acts of nature. The rooms sit behind
concrete walls that once marked boundaries of holding cells in the old
city jail. Tornadoes might leave their evidence behind, but they will not
take police evidence with them. "If a tornado comes, those evidence lockers
are still going to be there," Investigator Courtney said. Copyright © 2003 International Association for Property and Evidence, Inc. Reprinted from the Evidence Log, Volume 2003, Number 1, Page 36 |
