Former Officer Marcos Carrion Charged with Intent to Distribute Cocaine

Former Houston Police Department (HPD) officer Marcos E. Carrion, 36, has surrendered to authorities, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson today.

Carrion was charged in a sealed indictment returned April 16, 2014. It was unsealed as Carrion turned himself into authorities this morning. He is expected to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge George C. Hanks Jr. at 2:00 p.m. today.

Carrion is charged with conspiring with others to possess with the intent to distribute five or more kilograms of cocaine from mid-2013 through April 2014.

Carrion, a five-year HPD veteran, had recently resigned from his position.

If convicted, he faces a minimum of 10 years and up to life in federal prison as well as a possible $10 million fine.

The charges are the result of a six-month investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration with the assistance of HPD and the FBI. The case will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Mark E. Donnelly and Shelley J. Hicks.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.

Former Officer Mark Fisher Arrested for Distributing Prescription Pain Narcotics

Attorney General Kathleen G. Kane today announced the arrest of a former Allegheny County police officer on charges that he participated in and directed the activities of an illegal prescription drug ring.

Evidence and testimony regarding the alleged illegal activity was presented to a statewide investigating grand jury, which recommended the criminal charges being filed today. The grand jury identified the defendant as Mark Fisher, 34, currently incarcerated in the Westmoreland County Prison. Fisher is a former police officer with the Turtle Creek Police Department.

According to the grand jury, Fisher, who developed an addiction to pain medications following an injury, recruited several individuals to assist him in distributing prescription pain narcotics throughout western Pennsylvania. After a period of time Fisher allegedly stopped using other individuals and began to pass prescriptions at various pharmacies in either his own name or the name of his wife.

The grand jury found that Fisher obtained the pills by using illegal prescriptions that were passed at several pharmacies throughout Westmoreland and Allegheny counties.

Pennsylvania has the fourteenth highest rate of drug overdoses in the country, most of which are caused by prescription drugs. Attorney General Kane reiterated her support for a prescription monitoring program in the Commonwealth because it would serve as an additional tool to enable health practitioners and law enforcement in identifying individuals involved in the illegal trade of doctor shopping and dealing in fraudulent prescriptions.

Attorney General Kane noted that this is an active and ongoing investigation and additional arrests are anticipated.

Fisher is charged with one count of acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception or subterfuge; one count of possession with the intent to deliver; one count of criminal conspiracy; and one count of impersonating a public servant.

The case will be prosecuted in Westmoreland County by Senor Deputy Attorney General Mark Serge of the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Section.

Former Officer Mitchel Wright Arrested for Selling Meth

Authorities say a former Washington police officer who spent time working for the DEA was arrested for the second time in less than a year last month after his life took a dark turn and he planned to become a drug kingpin.

Mitchel J. Wright, who joined the King County Sheriff's Department in 2002, was fired last year after being accused of stealing drug evidence while working undercover for the DEA. He was arrested on Feb. 11 after selling drugs to undercover officers on separate occasions. He reportedly bragged that he'd never be caught because knew every police tactic. His hubris was his downfall.

Wright, 33, resigned last July after a cop discovered a woman injecting herself with heroin inside of a vehicle registered to Wright. She told police that she lived with Wright and worked for him as an informant, and a subsequent search of the vehicle produced drugs and drug paraphernalia.

An internal investigation revealed that Wright was giving strippers heroin and methamphetamine to persuade them to work as drug dealers for him. His ultimate goal was to dominate the area drug trade using his authority, knowledge of the underworld and access to evidence.

After being placed on administrative leave, Wright resigned. Later that month, King County deputies discovered three baggies bearing DEA case numbers inside of his old police car. Each tested positive for heroin. It's estimated that Wright seized between $36,450 and $52,490 worth of drugs during his stint with the DEA and never turned them in as evidence.

For his most recent arrest, Wright was charged with distribution of over five grams of meth and conspiracy to distribute meth. If convicted, he faces up to 40 years in prison and a $5 million fine.

Officer Richard Irizzary Arrested by DEA

A  Titusville Police Officer on administrative leave since January was taken into custody Thursday by DEA agents and the Titusville Police Internal Affairs Investigator according to Titusville Police in a statement.

Richard Irizzary, a patrol officer since March 2010, was taken into custody as he arrived at police headquarters Thursday morning for a scheduled interview.

Titusville Police said Irizzary was arrested after he was indicted on federal charges on Wednesday.

Police said Irizzary’s badge and gun were seized back in January when he was placed on administrative leave.

The Federal charges summarized include: To Aid & Abet the Possession with Intent to Distribute Controlled Substance while armed with a Firearm; and Use of a Communication Device to Aid the Possession of Controlled Substances.

Titusville Police Chief John Lau and other members of his command staff have been working directly with the DEA since January when the department first learned of the allegations.

“We were appalled and shocked when we learned of these allegations and immediately offered our complete cooperation”, said Titusville Police Chief John Lau.

“We have been working in tandem with DEA investigators on this isolated incident that does not involve any other department member” said Lau.

“The law enforcement profession has absolutely no room for employees with no integrity and the second a police officer breaks their oath and commits a crime, they are no longer a police officer”

The department will be able to comment on the specifics of the internal investigation when it has concluded, which could take several weeks. Irizzary was taken directly to the federal courthouse in Orlando by DEA agents after his arrest. The federal charges in the indictment carry a minimum mandatory prison sentence of 10 years.

Titusville Police said they will move to suspend him without pay after a due process hearing. The agency said they cannot move to terminate Irizzary until the completion of an Internal Investigation.

Deputy Darrell Mathis Arrested for Selling Marijuana Out of His Police Car

An undercover sting operation nabbed an Atlanta-area sheriff's deputy who was selling marijuana out of his patrol car and in uniform, federal authorities say.

Newton County Deputy Darrell Mathis told an informant that he could sell pot without fear because "he drives safely and flashes police credentials to get out of tickets if stopped," according to court papers. Mathis, a five-year veteran deputy, was freed on bond after his arrest last week, the FBI said.

"This defendant used his position as a police officer to openly violate the very laws that he was sworn to uphold," U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said in a written statement.

"Selling marijuana out of his police car while wearing a badge and uniform is outrageous. This case is a reminder that no one is above the law."

Mathis has been charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and with carrying a firearm during a drug offense -- a charge that could bring a possible life sentence if convicted. He did not immediately return messages seeking comment Sunday.

Newton County is about 30 miles east of Atlanta. Sheriff Ezell Brown said Mathis has been placed on administrative leave, and his office is cooperating with the investigation.

"This is an embarrassment to the Newton County Sheriff's Office, as well as law enforcement in general," Brown said in a joint statement with Yates.

According to the charges against him, Mathis attracted the attention of the FBI in April after what officials called a "social visit" by a person who went on to become a confidential informant. The informant visited Mathis at his apartment and saw large bags of what was "believed to be marijuana" on the living room table.

The complaint states that Mathis told the informant that he wasn't concerned about getting caught, because of his safe driving and police credentials.

Apparently unnerved by the exchange, the informant went to the authorities and offered to help with an investigation. The FBI then set up a half dozen meetings among Mathis, the informant and eventually two undercover agents, court papers recount.

Mathis and the informant discussed a drug sale during their next meeting, the charges state. Mathis sold the informant an ounce of marijuana later that day, showing up for the deal in his cruiser, in uniform and carrying his service pistol.

After that, an undercover agent got involved -- and the amounts of marijuana increased.
In June, as the agent bought a pound of pot, Mathis boasted, "I do my little 10 to 15 a week" -- a phrase the agent "understood to mean selling 10 to 15 pounds a week," the arrest affidavit states.

Then in early August, according to the complaint, Mathis met with another undercover agent, a supposed cocaine dealer. The two agents and Mathis sat down at a restaurant to discuss buying and transporting marijuana and cocaine, according to the complaint.

While the three spoke, Mathis allegedly pulled out his badge and told the undercover agent, "Don't worry, I'm on your side." By the end of the meeting, the complaint alleges, Mathis had agreed to run marijuana and cocaine from Alabama to North Carolina at the behest of the undercover agent.

Federal agents found a pound of pot on Mathis when he was arrested last week, the FBI said.

Former Trooper Marvin McKinnon Faces Drug Charges

A former state trooper was arrested at his Nahant home on Wednesday afternoon on numerous drug charges.

Marvin McKinnon, 49, 16B Seabreeze Lane, was charged with possession with intent to distribute a Class D substance, possession and cultivation, according to police.

Lt. Thomas Hutton said McKinnon is a former state trooper and the arrest followed a lengthy investigation that got underway after police received a tip that McKinnon was dealing drugs.

"A significant number of marijuana plants and a significant amount of marijuana were recovered at the scene," he said.

Hutton said Nahant Police obtained a search warrant out of Lynn District Court and executed it Wednesday.

"The execution of the search warrant culminated a lengthy investigation into the dealings of Mr. McKinnon," he said. "Subsequently an arrest was made. Officers Armand Conti and Timothy Furlong and myself made the arrest."
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Former Deputy Standric Choice Enters Guilty Plea to Drug Charges

A former Dallas County sheriff's deputy has agreed to plead guilty to cocaine-related charges, the U.S. attorney's office said Friday.

Standric Choice, 36, is expected to formally enter his guilty plea next week before a U.S. magistrate.

Choice agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, possessing a firearm during and in relation to a drug-trafficking crime, and possession with the intent to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine while at a truck stop, the U.S. attorney's office said.

He faces a minimum of 10 years in prison and could get a life sentence, as well as a $4.25 million fine.

Choice and two co-defendants, Terry Kemone Anderson, 29, and Charlie Lee Hill, 31, were arrested in January.

Hill pleaded guilty earlier this month to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.

Anderson has agreed to plead guilty to the same offense.

Hill and Anderson each face five to 40 years in prison.

According to court records, an informant posing as a drug dealer told Hill he planned to buy four kilograms of cocaine from a South Texas trafficker.

Hill, who is believed to be Choice's brother-in-law, said Choice could pretend to arrest the informant and grab the cocaine, the U.S. attorney's office said. The informant and Hill then would split the drugs and compensate Choice.

On Jan. 9, according to the court records, Choice confronted the "drug dealer" at TA Truck Stop on Interstate 20 and Bonnie View Road in southern Dallas. He confiscated the cocaine and forced the man to go with him.

Choice then left the truck stop, and Hill and Anderson, who had both been observing the phony arrest, followed Choice for about a mile before stopping in a secluded area. Choice released the informant and handed over the cocaine.

Choice was arrested after returning to the Dallas County sheriff's office. Hill and Anderson were arrested near the truck stop.


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