CORRUPTION PROBE NETS 3 MORE COPS

Join 4 Others Charged From Elite Unit

A Chicago Police sergeant and two officers were arrested Monday in
a widening corruption investigation of the elite Special Operations
Section -- bringing the total number of officers charged in the case to seven.

Sgt. James McGovern, 40, was charged with official misconduct, and
his bond was set at $50,000. He's been on the force for 13 years.

Officers Margaret Hopkins, 32, and Frank Villareal, 38, were charged
with home invasion and official misconduct, and Villareal was
charged with armed violence. They will appear in bond court today.
Hopkins joined the department seven years ago and Villareal, 12 years ago.

Officers Jerome Finnigan, Carl Suchocki, Keith Herrera and Thomas
Sherry were charged in September with a list of felonies in 11
separate incidents dating to 2003.

On Monday, Finnigan, Suchocki and Herrera were charged in three
additional incidents, authorities said. They also will appear in
bond court today. They have been free on bail since September.

Attorney Robert Kuzas downplayed the new charges against his client,
Herrera. "These are nothing more than mirror allegations," Kuzas
said. "We are looking forward to the opportunity to address these
issues in court."

The investigation by the police Internal Affairs Division and Cook
County state's attorney's office -- called Operation Broken Oath --
ranks as one of the most significant of its kind. The last time
seven Chicago Police officers were charged with corruption was
during a federal investigation of the Austin District in 1996.

Additional officers have been stripped of their police powers, but
they have not been criminally charged.

More charges possible "This may reach the double digits" in the
number of arrested officers, one law enforcement source said.

The Special Operations Section is a citywide unit that makes gun and
drug arrests. Finnigan allegedly was the ringleader of a robbery
ring that operated out of the unit, preying on drug dealers and
ordinary citizens alike.

Hopkins and Villareal -- like their co-defendants -- also face
lawsuits in federal court alleging police misconduct.

This year, Hopkins and other officers were sued by Seneca Adams, who
alleged brutality, and by Noel Padilla, who claimed he was framed on
drug charges that were later dropped. Villareal was among officers
sued last year by Laneer Winder, who won a $20,000 settlement from
the city after claiming he was framed.

The city has paid out $178,500 in legal settlements involving
Finnigan for eight incidents dating to 1995.