DRUGS GONE, COP IS SUSPECT

Missing Cocaine Estimated At $2.4 Million

A Detroit police narcotics officer, trusted to handle seized drugs as
evidence, has been suspended under suspicion that he stole 6
kilograms of cocaine with a street value of about $2.4 million from
the department's property room.

Police Chief Ella Bully-Cummings said Thursday that the veteran
officer, on the job since 1989, ran a scheme in which he signed out
the drugs from the property room as evidence and replaced them with a
substance that looked like cocaine.

She has turned over the criminal investigation to the FBI while
internal affairs investigates department charges.

"This individual has turned his back on this department, his
colleagues and the community we serve," Bully-Cummings said during a
news conference. "I, along with the hardworking members of this
police department, have absolutely no tolerance for anyone who
chooses to tarnish the image of the Detroit Police Department and
defy the oath taken by police officers."

The chief said investigators discovered the theft last week when the
officer, whom she declined to name, returned the original packages
that previously contained cocaine. Additional testing proved the new
substance was not cocaine.

Bully-Cummings said that the nature of the officer's assignment would
not have initially raised suspicion when he signed out the drugs.

"It has become clear that this individual lied to take custody of the
narcotics and stole them," she said, adding that she is uncertain
what the officer did with the cocaine.

Bully-Cummings suspended the officer with pay but said that the pay
status could change once the Board of Police Commissioners reviews the matter.