Why must the FBI have to come in here and clean up our stinking, rank, fetid, rancid corruption?
"FBI case focuses on TVs, police; Agents seized stolen property in Stoughton" by Shelley Murphy, Globe Staff | September 24, 2009
STOUGHTON - Several weeks ago, FBI agents showed up at a Portuguese social club on Washington Street, startling members as they pulled two flat-screen televisions from the wall, checked the serial numbers on the back, and then carted them away.
The high-definition televisions, which had allegedly been stolen, were seized as part of an ongoing federal grand jury investigation into allegations of theft and possible corruption involving Stoughton police officers, according to several people familiar with the investigation.
“The feds aren’t just looking at receiving stolen goods,’’ said one of the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The investigation has been fueled by allegations made by an informant with a lengthy criminal history, the sources said.
Uh-oh! Always a bad sign!
And it has cast a new shadow on a Police Department that was shaken by an earlier scandal that ended with the former chief being convicted in January of aiding a sergeant in the attempted extortion of a local businessman....
Related: From the Files of Police Squad
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The three people who are familiar with the investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity said a longtime informant for former Stoughton police detective Anthony Bickerton began cooperating with authorities after the informant was arrested recently on a number of charges. The informant, who has a lengthy record that includes arrests on charges involving drugs, burglary, forgery, assault and battery, and motor vehicle violations, has accused Stoughton police officers of wrongdoing, the sources said.
Not the most TRUSTWORTHY source, is he?
Related: FBI Case File: The New Informant
The appearance of FBI agents on doorsteps of local establishments and a flurry of subpoenas have shaken this town of 28,000 and have sparked speculation about the probe on local websites and blogs....
Then why don't you go there, Glob?
And they must not have much because now the charges have been reduced to lying -- a sure sign of a collapsing case.
"Detective who quit charged with lying to FBI in investigation" by Shelley Murphy, Globe Staff | November 21, 2009
A day after a detective abruptly resigned from the Stoughton Police Department, he was charged yesterday with making false statements to the FBI during an ongoing investigation into corruption....
“The integrity of our justice system requires police officers to be truthful when questioned regarding any subject and particularly in corruption matters,’’ US Attorney Carmen Ortiz said in a press release announcing the criminal charge. “Allegations of a police officer making false statements are serious charges and undermine the public’s confidence in our criminal justice system.’’
Our system is shot.
It's rife with liars, thieves, and murderers.
The only tool left is jury nullification.
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A few months ago, FBI agents showed up at a Portuguese social club on Washington Street in Stoughton, pulled two flat-screen televisions from the wall, checked the serial numbers to confirm they were stolen, and carted them away.
The investigation has been fueled by allegations made by a longtime informant for former Stoughton police detective Anthony Bickerton, ccording to several people familiar with the investigation who spoke on condition of anonymity. They said the informant, who has a lengthy criminal record, began cooperating with authorities after he was arrested on a number of charges. Bickerton, who is a member of the Stoughton School Committee, retired from the Police Department in September after 30 years on the force.
Brockton lawyer Joseph Krowski, who represents Bickerton, declined to comment yesterday on the FBI investigation and said Bickerton “has done nothing wrong.’’
The investigation comes on the heels of another unrelated scandal that shook the Stoughton Police Department....
--more--"And it is not just Stoughton the FBI has to clean up around here.
"Police agencies settle with US; $200,000 payment over ‘false claims’" by Jonathan Saltzman, Globe Staff | August 18, 2009
A consortium of 49 local law enforcement agencies from Middlesex and Essex counties will pay the US government $200,000 to settle allegations that the group made “false claims’’ about how it used several hundred thousands of dollars in federal grants, the US Justice Department said yesterday.
Gee, when it is stimuloot they crow about it.
And WHO do you think is PICKING UP THAT TAB, Bay-State taxpayers?!
Uh-huh!
The government had provided a number of grants to the North Eastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council in 2001 and 2002, to help local police identify threats and prevent acts of violence at more than 500 public schools in the region. The council certified in a 2003 filing that it used the money for that purpose, according to a Justice Department statement.
But a subsequent investigation by the department’s office of the inspector general found that the council “had not properly accounted for several hundred thousand dollars of grant funds,’’ the Justice Department said. The department declined to specify what the law enforcement council did wrong. “Some of the grant money was used for programs other than the programs the grant was intended to fund. Don’t have the specific amounts or what they were used for,’’ Justice Department spokesman Charles S. Miller wrote in an e-mail response to the Globe....
The council is a Boston-based nonprofit group that represents 47 police departments and the sheriff’s departments of Middlesex and Essex counties. Covering a 700-square-mile region, the council has a rapid-response team and motorcycle unit, provides help investigating crimes, and has conducted internal investigations of local police departments.
In 1999, the council created a School Threat Assessment and Response System, known as STARS. The program establishes teams of police officers and school employees who can quickly respond to threats of violence, including bombs and shootings. It was this program that received the federal grants in question....
The Justice Department’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention provided the funds to the council. Police members of the council have performed several homeland security functions outside their home turf. In January, 85 officers from the council’s departments went to Washington for the inauguration of President Obama....
So when do you STOP PICKING UP the TAB for this TYRANNY based on FALSITIES, Bay-Staters?
The cost for the Massachusetts contingent, including airfare, lodging, and a per-diem salary, would be borne by the Washington metropolitan police, he said.
Oh, so THOSE TAXPAYERS got FLEECED! I feel so much better!
The council, he added, also provided security functions for the Democratic National Convention in Boston and at demonstrations at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund in Washington.
Oh, the THIN BLUE LINE protecting the ELITE!!
What, no problem with the $$$ going for that, huh?
Just when its for the kids?
--more--"
Also see: More Dirt on DiMasi
I guess I see why the FBI has to do it now.
