This Week's Corrupt Cop Stories

A South Carolina deputy gets in trouble for his relationship choices, a former small-town Pennsylvania police chief's heroin habit gets him in trouble, and more.

In Walterboro, South Carolina, a former Colleton County sheriff's deputy has resigned after an internal investigation found that he had been in a sexual relationship with "a known drug dealer/user" for the past year. Former Deputy William Janecki, who supervised the department's narcotics team, allegedly rented motel rooms for her and would overlook drugs in her possession during traffic stops with other deputies, as well as letting her know when warrants for her arrest were filed. Janecki has not yet been charged with anything, but the internal investigation has now been turned over to the State Law Enforcement Division, which will determine if any criminal charges are to be filed.

In Elizabeth, Pennsylvania, the former Elizabeth Borough police chief was indicted on federal charges last Wednesday for stealing heroin from the evidence locker. Former Chief Timothy Butler stole heroin evidence and was using it himself for nearly a year-and-a-half. He had already pleaded guilty to state charges for the same offense back in 2019 and skated with 45 months of probation. The feds have now charged him with one count of theft of government property. He was a member of a federal drug task force at the time and the drugs he stole were considered federal seized property.

In Tallahassee, Florida, a former Gadsden County sheriff's deputy was sentenced Tuesday to 10 months in federal prison for lying to a federal official about aiding a drug trafficker in 2018 and 2019 after he plea-bargained down from six charges, including unlawful use of a communication device or facilitate possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance; and intentionally attempting to possess a controlled substance, in this case cocaine. Joseph Barnes, 54, was also linked to a dog-fighting ring but was never charged for that. He went down after an investigation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, which was told that Barnes would help "large-scale" traffickers by, for example, removing covertly installed tracking devices from their vehicles. An informant then asked Barnes to remove any tracking devices from his vehicle, which he did with FBI agents watching. He also provided expertise on how to defeat drug dogs. When he was questioned by the FBI, he lied about it, and that is what he is going to prison for.