Seven Baltimore cops stand accused of participating in a racketeering scheme in which they robbed citizens, filed false affidavits, and claimed fraudulent overtime. The federal indictment against the cops accuses them of scheming to steal cash, property, and drugs by detaining “suspects,” conducting traffic stops, and swearing false search warrant affidavits. "These are really robberies by people who are wearing police uniforms," Maryland US Attorney Rod Rosenstein said.
The police officers, identified as Sgt. Wayne Jenkins and Detectives Momodu Gondo, Evodio Hendrix, Daniel Hersl, Jemell Rayam, Marcus Taylor and Maurice Ward, stand accused of stealing amounts ranging from $200 to $200,000. In one specific case, several of the named officers allegedly stole $1,500 from a maintenance supervisor at a nursing home, who was planning to pay his rent with the money. "These are 1930's style gangsters as far as I'm concerned," said Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis. "This is a punch in the gut for the Baltimore Police Department."
Not only did the cops allegedly steal from individuals, they also stand accused of stealing from taxpayers. The officers are charged with "large-scale time and attendance fraud,” requesting overtime pay when they were not actually working. One cop was receiving overtime pay while allegedly on vacation in South Carolina, while two others were caught on a phone call boasting about making "at least $8,000 to $10,000 a month” extra from overtime fraud.
