Month: July 2015

Former Senator Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case

Originally published on July 2, 2015, at NationofChange.org

While investigating a Chinese organized crime syndicate operating in San Francisco, undercover FBI agents stumbled upon the illegal activities of a state senator associated with the criminal organization. In a case involving drug deals, gun trafficking, fraudulent credit cards, and a murder-for-hire conspiracy, former California State Senator Leland Yee was caught soliciting bribes, laundering money, and arranging an international illegal arms deal for shoulder-fired weapons and rocket launchers. On Wednesday, Yee pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering and confessed to his direct involvement in multiple conspiracies.

On August 5, 2010, renowned Chinese gangster Raymond “Shrimp Boy” Chow of the Chee Kung Tong (CKT) organization introduced an undercover FBI agent to CKT consultant and Yee political advisor, Keith Jackson. At Sen. Yee’s behest, Jackson repeatedly requested that the undercover FBI agent contribute to Yee’s campaign for mayor of San Francisco. The FBI agent later introduced Yee and Jackson to several other undercover FBI agents posing as campaign donors seeking political favors from Yee.

On the night of August 16, 2012, Keith Jackson informed the undercover FBI agent that his son, Brandon Jackson, was shipping approximately 300lbs of marijuana each month to Memphis, Tennessee, and asked the agent if he knew any contacts able to acquire large amounts of prescription drugs like Oxycotin or Hydrocodone. For the next year and a half, the Jacksons and their associate, a sports agent named Marlon Sullivan, frequently solicited the FBI agent to provide cocaine for them to sell.

After illegally selling three firearms to the undercover FBI agent on June 24, 2013, the Jacksons and Sullivan sold several handguns, rifles, a shotgun, and two ballistic vests, including one stolen from the FBI, to the undercover agent on the following day. Over the next few months, they continued to illegally sell firearms, discuss drug trafficking deals, and arrange a murder-for-hire plot, while soliciting campaign donations for Yee.

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Police Barring Release of Videos Showing Cops Killing Unarmed Innocent Man

Proceed with...

Originally published on June 30, 2015, at NationofChange.org

Several law enforcement organizations filed court documents last week seeking to suppress videos that recorded officers killing an unarmed innocent man and shooting his friend in the back. Attorneys for the police believe the officers should not be held accountable for their mistake and are fighting to bar the release of the videos. Although the district attorney claims that the victim appeared to be reaching for a weapon, multiple witnesses and an attorney for the victims’ families, who watched the videos, contradict the official narrative.

After his shift at a local restaurant ended on the evening of June 1, 2013, Ricardo Diaz-Zeferino joined his friends and his brother at Mis Amigos Bar in Gardena, California. Sometime after midnight, Diaz-Zeferino’s brother, Augustin de Jesus Reynoso, walked across the street with his bicycle to buy a lottery ticket at a CVS store. As he exited the CVS, Reynoso realized that his bike had been stolen.

A CVS employee called 911 reporting that Reynoso’s bicycle had been stolen. Although the caller told the dispatcher that he didn’t think the thief was armed, the 911 dispatcher did not relate this information to the officers responding to the theft. According to Gardena police Lt. Steve Prendergast, the theft report was misinterpreted as a robbery with unknown weapons involved.

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LAPD Releases Name of Officer Who Shot Unarmed Man in the Head

Originally published on June 29, 2015, at NationofChange.org

One week after an LAPD officer shot an unarmed man in the head, the department released the name of the officer on Friday. Police officials claim that the man had been walking towards the officer and his partner in aggressive manner with his hands wrapped in a gray cloth when the officer opened fire. Although it is standard procedure to handcuff suspects after shooting them, video footage clearly shows the man was unresponsive with a massive exit wound in the back of his head when they cuffed him.

At 6:35 p.m. on June 19, Officer Cairo Palacios and his partner were sitting in their patrol car stuck in traffic when they noticed a man standing on the sidewalk attempting to flag down the officers. According to LAPD Cmdr. Andrew Smith, the officers heard 48-year-old Walter DeLeon calling out to them saying, “Police, police.”

The officers claim that DeLeon walked towards them in an “aggressive manner” while pointing at them with his hands wrapped in a gray cloth. Believing DeLeon had a gun hidden underneath the towel, the officers exited their vehicle and reportedly ordered him to drop the gun. When DeLeon allegedly did not comply, Officer Palacios opened fire shooting him in the head.

After DeLeon immediately fell to the ground, the officers searched him for weapons but found that he had been unarmed. A passing motorist recorded a graphic video of the officers handcuffing DeLeon even though he appeared unconscious with a massive exit wound in the back of his head and blood pouring down his neck. One of the motorists can be heard in the video exclaiming, “Oh! I see his brain!”

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Two Deputies and a Nurse Charged with Involuntary Manslaughter for Killing Student

Originally published on June 27, 2015, at NationofChange.org

A grand jury indicted two former deputies and a contract healthcare worker on felony involuntary manslaughter and related charges on Wednesday for beating and tasing a 21-year-old computer science student to death. Although the student was strapped to a restraining chair and left to die in an isolation cell, the grand jury dropped the murder charge against the deputy directly responsible for killing him. After the coroner ruled his death a homicide, nine deputies were fired last month for their participation in taking the student’s life.

Responding to a domestic disturbance at 6:15 p.m. on January 1, Savannah-Chatham police confronted a Savannah Technical College student named Matthew Ajibade and his girlfriend. According to the police report, Ajibade refused several commands to release his girlfriend and began resisting arrest. Officers slammed Ajibade to the ground before handcuffing him.

Ajibade was charged with battery against his girlfriend and resisting arrest. As officers subdued Ajibade, his girlfriend asked them to take Ajibade to the hospital and gave them his Divalproex medication, which treats the manic phase of bipolar disorder and seizures. Ajibade had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder three years earlier.

Instead of taking Ajibade to the hospital, officers transported him to the Chatham County jail at 6:40 p.m. While being booked, Ajibade allegedly became combative with deputies and attacked them. According to the sheriff’s office, a female sergeant suffered a broken nose and a concussion while two male deputies suffered injuries consistent with a fight.

Deputies placed Ajibade in an isolation cell and strapped him to a restraining chair. According to the indictment, Cpl. Jason Kenny repeatedly shot Ajibade with a Taser and struck him in the head and upper body as he remained strapped to the chair. While performing a welfare check on him the next morning, deputies found Ajibade unresponsive. Medical staff administered CPR and attempted to restart his heart with a defibrillator. A coroner pronounced him dead at 8:45 a.m.

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Police Officer Sentenced to 63 Months for Kicking in Suspect’s Teeth

Originally published on June 24, 2015, at NationofChange.org

A former Des Moines police officer was sentenced on Monday to 63 months in federal prison for kicking a restrained suspect in the face. Although dash cam footage from a patrol car caught the officer kicking in the suspect’s teeth and breaking his nose, Officer Colin Boone did not mention using excessive force in his arrest report. Instead of trying to cover up Officer Boone’s actions, his fellow officers reported the crime to their supervisors after learning Boone had submitted a false narrative.

Early on the morning of February 19, 2013, Orville Hill was driving his minivan on an icy road when he accidentally crashed into a concrete barrier. After several Des Moines police officers arrived on the scene, Hill panicked and attempted to drive away. The officers immediately pulled Hill from the van and threw him onto the ground before restraining him.

Dash cam footage revealed three officers holding Hill on the ground and a fourth cop standing over him when Officer Colin Boone ran up to them viciously kicking Hill in the face. Although Hill had been lying facedown and was not attempting to attack the officers, Boone knocked out two of his front teeth and broke his nose. After the incident, Hill was taken to Broadlawns Medical Center for treatment and stitches.

In his arrest report, Boone failed to mention using excessive force on the restrained suspect. Instead of trying to cover up the incident, Boone’s fellow officers reported the abuse to their supervisors. Dash cam footage from a patrol car verified their allegations against Boone.

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Deputies Testify Against Former Colleagues in Jail Abuse Trial

Originally published on June 21, 2015, at NationofChange.org

Two former Los Angeles sheriff’s deputies testified against their fellow deputies this week after brutally assaulting an inmate’s brother and covering up their excessive use of force. The victim and his girlfriend also testified in court presenting evidence that the deputies had lied about removing one of his handcuffs before beating the victim unconscious in a break room at Men’s Central Jail (MCJ) in Downtown Los Angeles. According to the deputies’ testimonies, their sergeant ordered them to lie and concoct a false narrative accusing the victim of resisting arrest.

On February 26, 2011, Gabriel Carrillo attempted to visit his brother, who was an inmate at MCJ, when deputies discovered that Carrillo’s then-girlfriend, Griselda Torres, had brought a cellphone into the facility. When questioned by deputies, Torres admitted that both she and Carrillo had their cellphones on them. After confirming that he did have a phone, Carrillo asked Deputy Pantamitr Zunggeemoge, “What are you going to do, arrest me?”

According to Zunggeemoge’s testimony, the deputy cuffed Carrillo’s hands behind his back and escorted him to a nearby break room, while Deputy Sussie Ayala placed Torres in handcuffs and followed them. Zunggeemoge slammed Carrillo into a refrigerator before patting him down and lifting his cuffed arms in order to inflict more pain. As Carrillo continued to mouth off to the deputies, Ayala called for backup on her radio.

When deputies Fernando Luviano, Noel Womack, and Sgt. Eric Gonzalez arrived, Zunggeemoge left the room to run Carrillo’s name through a criminal database. Zunggeemoge returned to find Luviano roughing up Carrillo. Instead of de-escalating the violence, Zunggeemoge rushed into the room and helped Luviano smash Carrillo’s face against the ground.

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