PHILADELPHIA
— A disgraced ex-police officer testifying against his drug squad
colleagues acknowledged Tuesday that he stole drug money, planted
evidence and lied on police paperwork too many times to count.
Jeffrey
Walker told jurors that the Philadelphia Police Department drug squad
targeted white "college-boy ... khaki-pants types" who were "easy to
intimidate."
That
matches the description of some of the drug dealers who have testified
in recent weeks in the federal police corruption trial. The witnesses
have said the squad stole as much as $110,000 at a time during illegal
raids marked by threats and physical violence.
Lead
defendant Thomas Liciardello, their de facto leader, always got a cut
of the money, while the others split "jobs" they actually worked, Walker
said. The city's police brass often celebrated the squad's success with
splashy news conferences when they made big seizures.
"It made them look good. It was nothing but a dog and pony show," Walker said.
More
than 160 drug convictions have been overturned since Walker pleaded
guilty and the others were named in a 25-count indictment. Scores of
civil-rights lawsuits are pending over the arrests.
Walker,
46, said he first stole money as a uniformed patrolman when he chased a
dealer into a house and spotted a large bag of cash on top of the
refrigerator.
"I never saw that much money. I was a young kid," Walker told jurors. "I took some money, put it in my jacket pocket."
Defense
lawyers have attacked his credibility and will no doubt point out on
cross-examination the times he admits acting alone, even before he
joined the elite undercover drug unit. He also said he developed a
drinking problem and became forgetful. The trial began last month and is
expected to last several more weeks.
Walker joined the department around age 20 and had nearly 24 years in when he was arrested in an FBI sting last year.
He
said he ultimately made $119,000 a year, apparently not counting
significant overtime for time spent in court or late-night drug
investigations, or the large sums of drug money he stole. He suggested
that squad members padded their overtime hours, and he faulted one-time
partner Linwood Norman for not making arrests that led to lucrative
court hours.
"We make money going to court," Walker testified. "He's basically riding along. I got frustrated with that."
Walker and Norman were known as "The Twin Towers," often assigned by Liciardello to rough people up.
In
one of their more memorable assignments, Norman leaned drug suspect
Michael Cascioli over a high-rise balcony to elicit the passcode for his
Palm Pilot, according to Walker, who helped scare the suspect.
City
police officials later held a news conference to announce that the 2007
search had yielded more than $1.5 million in marijuana and psychedelic
mushrooms, and $440,000 in cash. Federal prosecutors now say the squad
raided the apartment before they got a warrant.
In
another episode, Walker admitted carrying a heavy safe full of drug
money down 17 flights of stairs to avoid being seen on the elevator
security camera. And he described another heist when he stuffed so much
bundled cash into his police vest that he had to wear Liciardello's vest
over his to cover the bulge when he left the house.
Walker
agreed to cooperate last year after being caught in an FBI sting
stealing $15,000 from a suspect and planting drugs in his car. He has
been in custody for nearly a year and hopes to avoid a life sentence
through his testimony.
Liciardello,
he said, warned squad members not to change their spending habits so
dramatically that they attracted attention. Walker nonetheless said he
spent the money he made on clothes and other purchases.
The other defendants include Michael Spicer, Perry Betts and John Speiser.
Walker
said he once worked closely with Liciardello and co-defendant Briian
Reynolds but was ostracized as he went through a divorce, weight loss
surgery and other personal problems.
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