This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories

The Chronicle was on vacation last week, but prohibition-related law enforcement corruption took no holiday. Let's get to it:

In El Paso, an El Paso County Jail detention lieutenant was arrested on July 30 after he got caught smuggling synthetic cannabinoids into the jail. Lance Brown, a 35-year of the department, went down after the sheriff's office received information that an inmate had illegal drugs and was distributing them. The investigation pointed to Brown, who is now charged with engaging in organized criminal activity.

In Clearwater, Florida, a Clearwater Police narcotics detective was arrested on August 5 for allegedly tipping off two suspected drug traffickers to an ongoing investigation. Detective Frederick Lise is a nine-year veteran of the department and head of the Clearwater police officers' union. He went down after 13 people were arrested in July by Pinellas County sheriff's deputies in the bust of a dog-fighting ring and drug operation. Deputies then told Lise about the investigation into two of the men arrested.

Lise is accused of turning around and using confidential law enforcement databases to provide information to the two men. He also sent text messages to them. Once the two men were told they were under investigation, they concocted a scheme with Lise to set up other drug sellers and take credit for being informants. Lise is charged with felony misuse of public office for the unlawful disclosure of criminal investigative information and unlawful use of two-way communication devices, among eight felony counts in total. He was being held at the Pinellas County Jail on a $200,000 bond.

In Snow Hill, North Carolina, a Greene County jail guard was arrested on August 8 after being caught with the synthetic cannabinoid K2 at work. Corrections Officer Destiny Griggs, 24, went down after being searched upon arrival at the jail when other jail guards found the contraband. She is charged with possession of a controlled substance on prison premises and was given a $5,000 secured bond.

In Jackson, Michigan, a state Department of Corrections officer was arraigned on August 8 after being caught in July with 151 strips of buprenorphine, suboxone, and a Schedule 3 substance while in the visiting room of the prison. Guard Joshua Evans, 46, is charged with one count of delivery/manufacture of Schedule 1, 2, and 3 controlled substances except marijuana, methamphetamine, ecstasy, and cocaine and one count of bringing contraband into prisons.

In Clovis, New Mexico, a now former Clovis police officer was arrested on August 9 after turning himself in to face drug and other charges. Frank Careri is charged with trafficking controlled substances (methamphetamine), accessory to a residential burglary, and harboring a felon. He was released after booking. No further details are available.

In Houston, a former investigator with the Waller County District Attorney's (DA) Office was sentenced on August 9 to 10 years in federal prison after being convicted of attempted possession with intent to distribute heroin and money laundering. Mohammed "Alex" Ahmed Kassam went down in a sting where he believed he was transporting real drugs from Louisiana to Houston and from Houston to San Antonio in his police vehicle. He took $31,000 in bribes from undercover agents. During the trial, Kassam claimed he had authority from the Waller County DA to conduct undercover operations, but his former employer refuted that testimony. He is in custody pending transfer to a federal prison.

In New York City, a federal Bureau of Prisons guard was sentenced July 30 to 2 ½ years in prison for taking more than $20,000 in bribes to smuggle drugs into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Quandelle Joseph pleaded guilty in January 2024 to the charge of accepting bribes as a public official. He admitted to taking bribes from inmates in exchange for smuggling narcotics, cigarettes, and cell phones into the detention center. He also admitted to warning one drug-dealing inmate about forthcoming contraband searches.