A deputy sheriff who works for an anti-narcotics task force in Northern California found himself swept up in a $2 million marijuana arrest in Pennsylvania last week. The authorities are now trying to determine if any of the cases he worked on have been tainted.
According to a criminal complaint, Christopher M. Heath, the deputy, and another man, Tyler Long, 31, drove across the country to deliver more than 122 packages of marijuana to a person in West Manheim Township, Pa.
But investigators had been tipped off, and they stopped the car at around midnight on Dec. 28. The pair were arrested, along with a third man in another vehicle, identified as Ryan J. Falsone, 27.
In addition to the marijuana and $11,000 in cash, the authorities found Deputy Heath’s badge and his duty firearm, David Sunday, the York County chief deputy prosecutor, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday.
The Pennsylvania officers did not know before the arrest that Deputy Heath, 37, worked in law enforcement, he said.
Details about the drug bust were announced byTom Kearney, the York County district attorney, on Monday and reported in local newspapers.
An undated photo of Christopher M. Heath. Credit York County Prison “One has to be both saddened and angry when you hear of something like this,” Mr. Kearney said, according to The Evening Sun of Hanover. “The work that is done by the task force and police officers in general is very dangerous work, and it is made more dangerous by the fact that occasionally there is a bad apple in the barrel.”
The three men were arrested on felony drug charges and each posted $1 million bail, Mr. Sunday said.
Mr. Sunday said the marijuana packages altogether weighed more than 240 pounds and had a street value of more than $2 million.
The arrest means that authorities are now reviewing drug cases in at least two counties in northern California to see whether they have been compromised.
Yuba County is north of Sacramento, and marijuana growing has been a hot political issue. Early in 2015, the county board of supervisors put limits on cultivation, over substantial protests from some residents and support from others opposed to criminality around the drug business.
As part of the Yuba County Sheriff’s Department, Deputy Heath has worked on a task force known as NET-5, which targets illegal drug use, possession, manufacturing and sales. He worked on the task force for three years, which also serves Sutter County, investigating crimes and serving as a witness, including in at least one major federal case.
The Appeal-Democrat newspaper quoted the unit’s commander, Martin Horan, as saying that he had led at least 62 criminal cases, many of them related to marijuana.
The district attorney in Yuba County, Patrick McGrath, said he is now reviewing all the cases in which Deputy Heath had an investigative role to see if they were still viable.
“If Heath’s work was witnessed or can be otherwise credibly covered by the testimony of another investigator, the case may not be significantly impacted,” he said in an emailed statement. “In other situations, the case may be tainted to such a degree that we cannot proceed and the case will be dismissed.”
The Sutter County District Attorney, Amanda Hopper, could not immediately be reached for comment.
The paper reported that the deputy had been placed on leave but would continue to receive his salary during the administrative investigation.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/06/us/california-drug-enforcer-caught-with-marijuana-in-pennsylvania.html?_r=0
According to a criminal complaint, Christopher M. Heath, the deputy, and another man, Tyler Long, 31, drove across the country to deliver more than 122 packages of marijuana to a person in West Manheim Township, Pa.
But investigators had been tipped off, and they stopped the car at around midnight on Dec. 28. The pair were arrested, along with a third man in another vehicle, identified as Ryan J. Falsone, 27.
In addition to the marijuana and $11,000 in cash, the authorities found Deputy Heath’s badge and his duty firearm, David Sunday, the York County chief deputy prosecutor, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday.
The Pennsylvania officers did not know before the arrest that Deputy Heath, 37, worked in law enforcement, he said.
Details about the drug bust were announced byTom Kearney, the York County district attorney, on Monday and reported in local newspapers.
An undated photo of Christopher M. Heath. Credit York County Prison “One has to be both saddened and angry when you hear of something like this,” Mr. Kearney said, according to The Evening Sun of Hanover. “The work that is done by the task force and police officers in general is very dangerous work, and it is made more dangerous by the fact that occasionally there is a bad apple in the barrel.”
The three men were arrested on felony drug charges and each posted $1 million bail, Mr. Sunday said.
Mr. Sunday said the marijuana packages altogether weighed more than 240 pounds and had a street value of more than $2 million.
The arrest means that authorities are now reviewing drug cases in at least two counties in northern California to see whether they have been compromised.
Yuba County is north of Sacramento, and marijuana growing has been a hot political issue. Early in 2015, the county board of supervisors put limits on cultivation, over substantial protests from some residents and support from others opposed to criminality around the drug business.
As part of the Yuba County Sheriff’s Department, Deputy Heath has worked on a task force known as NET-5, which targets illegal drug use, possession, manufacturing and sales. He worked on the task force for three years, which also serves Sutter County, investigating crimes and serving as a witness, including in at least one major federal case.
The Appeal-Democrat newspaper quoted the unit’s commander, Martin Horan, as saying that he had led at least 62 criminal cases, many of them related to marijuana.
The district attorney in Yuba County, Patrick McGrath, said he is now reviewing all the cases in which Deputy Heath had an investigative role to see if they were still viable.
“If Heath’s work was witnessed or can be otherwise credibly covered by the testimony of another investigator, the case may not be significantly impacted,” he said in an emailed statement. “In other situations, the case may be tainted to such a degree that we cannot proceed and the case will be dismissed.”
The Sutter County District Attorney, Amanda Hopper, could not immediately be reached for comment.
The paper reported that the deputy had been placed on leave but would continue to receive his salary during the administrative investigation.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/06/us/california-drug-enforcer-caught-with-marijuana-in-pennsylvania.html?_r=0
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