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WEB POSTED 01-16-2001

 
 

 


'Secret' police documents found'
Another twist rises in Baltimore Police Department case on drug suspects

(FinalCall.com)--The secret location of the Baltimore Police Department Internal Affairs has been discovered. To add insult to injury, someone robbed the facility of documents and files critical to investigations of Baltimore�s finest.

The burglary took place on Christmas Eve. But just as mysteriously as it happened, most of the things stolen were returned only hours later.  Jim Isbell of Southeast Baltimore was searching dumpsters behind Dunkin Donuts outside the city limits in Essex, Md., when he found two bags full of police materials.

According to Mr. Isbell, inside the bags were police personnel folders, files, a city police officers� Rolodex, a city police flashlight, photos of people under surveillance, mug shots, video tapes with names and addresses and files marked �confidential-city police Internal Affairs section�.

Recognizing a definite emergency, Mr. Isbell called 911. Four county officers responded and carted the contents and Mr. Isbell off to the FBI where he was questioned.

He told reporters, �When they called the detective whose Rolodex it was, they got real hush-hush about everything.  I got the impression that they didn�t get everything back that they were looking for.�

The entire burglary is has generated little comment by the Baltimore Police Department.  They have not disclosed how the burglary was discovered or whom they�ve identified as suspects.

Speculations abound as to whether or not this was an inside job since few people were supposed to know about this hidden location. Some jokingly say that finding the materials behind a donut shop proves it was an inside cop job.

The case is being investigated as an inside job because of the things that were stolen and the damage done to the computers, according to Baltimore police spokesperson Ragina C. Averella.

�This is just horrible. Those files should never have been kept in an offsite location.  It compromises the integrity of the officers who made complaints as well as the cases they were investigating,� Sgt. Louis Hopson told The Final Call.

One of those cases in question involves Officer Brian L. Sewell.  He is the first case under Police Commissioner Edward T. Norris� vigorous efforts to catch crooked cops.   Officer Sewell, a six-year veteran, was arrested in October and charged with perjury and misconduct.

Officer Sewell arrested Frederick L. McCoy, a Black man, and charged him with drug possession. Officer Sewell�s charging documents explain that he saw Mr. McCoy place drugs under a park bench and then ran when he saw the police car.

But Internal Affairs Division says that couldn�t have happened because the department had placed the drugs as part of a sting operation. Critics argue that the case has revealed how some police across the country plant drugs on Black male suspects.

The items stolen from the office included information from Officer Sewell�s case, information that had not been turned over to the prosecution.  Officer Sewell will be arraigned this month.

The police department issued a statement confirming the incident but no other details.  �Due to the ongoing internal aspect of this investigation, the Police Department does not wish to comment on the particulars of the case,� said Ms. Averella.

            �Nisa I. Muhammad

 


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