OFFICER PLEADS GUILTY TO STEALING DRUGS

Police Sergeant In Narcotics Unit Took Confiscated Heroin

A respected narcotics and robbery investigator who spent nearly 20
years with the Berkeley police pleaded guilty Friday to stealing
heroin and methamphetamine from the department evidence locker for his own use.

Former Sgt. Cary Kent tampered with as many as 181 evidence envelopes
from criminal cases from as far back as 1998, but authorities were
quick to note the cases had been adjudicated and no prosecutions were
compromised.

Kent pleaded guilty to grand theft, possession of heroin and
possession of methamphetamine after turning himself in earlier in the
day to Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, where he was booked and released.
The former investigator, who retired March 14 rather than face an
internal affairs investigation, could face up to one year in jail and
five years' probation when Judge C. Don Clay sentences him on May 12.

He declined to comment outside the courtroom Friday, but his
attorney, Harry Stern of Pleasant Hill, said his client took
"absolute responsibility for his temporary lapse" during a storied
career, and his pleading guilty "speaks volumes to his character."

The attorney said the case underscores the reality that "beneath the
badge and the bulletproof vest," police officers are human beings
prone to "the same frailties" as everyone else.

"There was no one hurt at all but Cary himself," Stern said.

Police Chief Doug Hambleton said Kent acted alone and no other
officers have been implicated. He has asked the state Commission on
Peace Officers Standard of Training to review the department's drug
handling procedures.

"We are relieved the investigation is concluded, and we have
determined that only one officer was involved," the chief said in a
statement. "Now, we can move forward."

Kent, a former UC Berkeley police officer who will turn 54 this
month, was a respected investigator during most of his career.

His reputation began to unravel in September when Lt. Allen Yuen,
head of the department's drug unit, noticed Kent "looked unhealthy,
had put on a lot of weight and that his skin often looked gray or
pale," said an affidavit by Alameda County district attorney's
inspector Mark Scarlett.

Yuen also noted that Kent was "always perspiring, causing him to have
to change his clothes in the middle of the day due to a reoccurring
strong body odor," Scarlett wrote.

Kent fell asleep at his desk, was late to work, sometimes wore the
same clothes he'd worn the day before and failed to finish
assignments, the affidavit said.

In December, Kent began to distance himself from other officers on
the drug squad, often going into his office and closing the door
behind him -- an action "uncharacteristic of him," according to the affidavit.

Kent claimed he had lupus and his medication made him tired,
authorities said. But his fellow investigators recognized the
behavior as being typical of a drug addict. They grew suspicious
because Kent was one of five officers within the department -- which
has about 200 sworn officers -- to have access to the evidence locker.

Investigators began an audit, and preliminary findings showed someone
had tampered with, or removed drugs from, at least 15 evidence envelopes.

Hambleton summoned Kent, who agreed to appear if he would not be
arrested, the affidavit states. The chief confronted Kent with the
preliminary audit results and told Kent he was being placed on paid
administrative leave pending further investigation.

Kent, according to the affidavit, told Hambleton, "If you only knew
what I was going through, if you only knew the position I was in. I
don't want to be an embarrassment to myself, to the department or to
my family. I just want to make it all go away."

Further investigation brought to 181 the number of envelopes that had
been tampered with, and each had been contained in bags that Kent had
earmarked for destruction, the affidavit said.