METRA COP SHOOK DOWN IMMIGRANTS, AUTHORITIES SAY

A Metra police officer will appear in bond court today after being
charged over the weekend with shaking down people he believed were
illegal immigrants--while he was on the clock and in a squad car,
authorities said.

Patrolman Walter Bergstrom was charged late Sunday with four counts of
official misconduct, four counts of armed robbery, three counts of
aggravated kidnapping and one count of unlawful restraint, according
to the Cook County state's attorney's office.

After his Saturday night arrest, substances believed to be marijuana
and cocaine were found in his belongings, leading to charges of
possession of a controlled substance and possession of cannabis, as
well, authorities said.

The other charges stem from four incidents between May 26 and June 9
in which Bergstrom, a 42-year-old resident of the south suburbs,
stopped Hispanic drivers and pedestrians and took their money,
typically after handcuffing them, police said.

"All the victims spoke very little English, if any, so it appears they
were targeted," Blue Island Police Chief Joe Kosman said Monday.

"I think he figured guys like that, the targets, would never come
forward to authorities," Kosman added.

At least one of the victims was not an illegal immigrant, officials
said.

In the latest incident, Bergstrom pulled over a driver in
unincorporated Cook County near 138th and Ashland, handcuffed him and
ordered the man's 13-year-old nephew to drive off, officials said.

Bergstrom then took $430 from the uncle's pockets and told him to
leave the area, prosecutors said. The man walked home.

Statements from witnesses and victims who came forward after the
latest incidents helped identify Bergstrom, who was arrested at his
police station.

Detectives from Blue Island, Posen, Dixmoor and the State Police were
involved in the case, which may yield additional charges, officials
said.

"There are other incidents being investigated," said Cook County
State's Attorney spokeswoman Marcy O'Boyle. Some of the victims knew
people who also allege they were victimized, Kosman said.

Bergstrom was well-regarded during his three years with the 85-member
Metra police department and the prior eight years with Calumet City.

In 1999, Bergstrom was injured for trying to stop a brawl aboard a
Metra train carrying drunken passengers who had been at Blues Fest.

"He was badly beaten for trying to stop a disturbance," Metra
spokesman Frank Malone said, adding it took 10 months for Bergstrom to
return to work.

He now is being taken "out of service" without pay, pending the
outcome of his case, Malone said.