COPS GUILTY OF COVERING DRUG SCAM

Fallout from the case of a cop dubbed one of Chicago's most corrupt
continued Wednesday with three officers pleading guilty to a scheme to steal
cocaine from a drug trafficker, blame it on someone else and then cover it
up.

In what federal prosecutors called a first for the Chicago area, two of the
officers--Edgar I. Placencio and Ruben Oliveras--were charged not for
financial gain from the scam but for covering up for colleagues.

Placencio, with 11 years on the force, pleaded guilty to a felony civil
rights violation. Oliveras, a 16-year veteran, pleaded guilty to a
misdemeanor civil rights charge.

In announcing the charges, U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald had a warning
for police who think there is an unspoken code against turning in a fellow
officer.

"If officers know of others committing crimes, they better report that
criminal conduct promptly--you better tell the truth about it,'' Fitzgerald
said. "Or, otherwise, they will be prosecuted as well.''

Police Supt. Terry Hillard said the officers will pay for "looking the other
way."

"They are looking at jail time, they are looking at a career that's been
disgraced,'' he said. "I am pleased to get these people out of our
uniform.''

A third officer, former Grand Central Area Detective Jon F. Woodall, 40,
pleaded guilty Wednesday to charges of drug conspiracy.

The three men stood side by side as family members in the courtroom wept.
Woodall, a linebacker of a man with a shaved head, stood with his hands
clasped in front of him as he admitted his role in the scheme.

Two other officers implicated in the scam--Peter L. Matich, 40, and James B.
Benson, 34--already have pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy charges and await
sentencing.

Prosecutors said Wednesday that a sixth officer, identified only as "Officer
3,'' is not subject to investigation, but rather came forward to cooperate.

The federal probe into the five officers stemmed from the investigation of
former Chicago officer Joseph Miedzianowski, who was sentenced last month to
life in prison for running a cocaine ring between Chicago and Miami.

In March 1998, a drug dealer associate of Miedzianowski, Fred Rock, tipped
off Woodall about a suspected drug trafficker, according to Woodall's plea
agreement.

Woodall and the four other officers, who were Grand Central tactical
officers at the time, stopped the subject in a Chevrolet Camaro at Cicero
and Foster around March 12. The officers found three kilograms of cocaine,
but the suspect told the officers there was a Buick parked in a Chicago
Police impound lot that had more drugs in a hidden compartment.

Woodall, Matich, Benson, Placencio and the suspect went to the lot,
prosecutors said. Woodall broke into the compartment and took about seven
kilograms of cocaine and a 9mm pistol, according to the plea agreement.

Once back at the Grand Central parking lot, Woodall, Matich and Benson
agreed to falsify police reports to implicate the driver of the Camaro with
possession of two kilograms of the cocaine, in addition to the three
kilograms of suspected drugs. They would keep the rest to sell, prosecutors
said.

Woodall eventually gave Rock one kilogram to sell. According to the plea
agreement, Rock gave Woodall $9,500 from the sale of the cocaine and owed
him more.

At least one aspect of the investigation remains open, prosecutors said. The
owner of the Buick was slain in 1998, and Woodall is alleged to have caused
a witness to withhold key information.

Placencio, 33, Oliveras, 42, and Woodall are scheduled to be sentenced May
28 before U.S. District Judge John Darrah. Placencio is expected to face up
to six months, and Oliveras faces up to a year. Woodall faces nine years.