POLICE OFFICER IN NEW JERSEY KEPT EVIDENCE IN STORAGE

NEWARK -- Bidding on the abandoned contents of a storage locker is
often a game of chance, sometimes producing valuable antiques, other
times a pile of moldy clothes.

One man who makes a living off such auctions had perhaps his most
interesting find last Wednesday. After winning three large bins from
one storage room, he opened them up and found five handguns; 30 police
evidence bags containing cocaine, marijuana and heroin; a pile of
money; and nearly 50 case files from the Irvington Police Department.

The man, who was not publicly identified, contacted his brother, a
detective in Passaic County. On Friday night, Essex County officials
arrested Officer Fredrick T. Southerland of the Irvington Police
Department and charged him with official misconduct and receiving
stolen property.

He had rented the locker, but had fallen behind in his payments, so
under state law the facility was allowed to auction the storage room's
contents.

Paula T. Dow, the Essex County prosecutor, said the files and evidence
were from the Police Department's internal affairs bureau and juvenile
crime squad -- two divisions Officer Southerland had worked in during
his 18 years on the force.

Authorities said they were combing through the files to determine if
the cases were under Officer Southerland's purview. The files dated
back to the 1990's, and did not include any from recent years, Ms. Dow
said. It was not immediately clear if any trials had been
compromised.

Ms. Dow ordered a complete audit of the Irvington Police Department's
evidence room and a review of Officer Southerland's caseload.

She said she did not know what Officer Southerland's motive might have
been for hoarding the files, money and drugs. "Maybe he just didn't
want to work," the prosecutor said. "It is just stupidity on his
part." She said the investigation was continuing.

Officer Southerland, 49, of Irvington, was summoned to the station
house Friday night, confronted with the evidence and arrested. He is
currently being held in the Essex County jail in $100,000 bail. He was
suspended without pay after his arrest.

Officer Southerland had been under investigation within the department
for the last several moths on a different matter, Irvington Police
Chief Michael Chase said. He would not comment further, but said the
officer was aware of the investigation and had been permitted to
remain on the force.

Calls placed to a phone number listed for Officer Southerland's home
were not answered on Saturday.

Officer Southerland had been delinquent on his payments at the storage
center, on Springfield Avenue in Union, N.J., for the last 10 months
and despite several certified letters alerting him that his items
would be auctioned, he never contacted the center. Some clothes and
other items tagged with Officer Southerland's name were also among his
belongings there.

Chief Chase said the arrest was a blow to Irvington's 158-member
force. The township has seen a rise in crime and gang activity in
recent years.

"We are still on the job catching and prosecuting criminals," he said.
"Anyone who violates the oath of an officer can expect to get the same."