Feds will drop charges against 28 drug defendants amid probe of FBI agent; 14 are already in prison
Federal prosecutors will drop charges against 28 drug defendants in Washington, D.C., amid the suspension and investigation of an FBI agent accused of tampering with evidence.
Half of the defendants were already in prison after pleading guilty, the Washington Post reports. They will be allowed to withdraw their pleas. Documents recently unsealed in the case reveal the agent is suspected of tampering with evidence that included drugs and guns.
The Justice Department’s inspector general is investigating the FBI agent, who has not been charged, the story says. Sources tell the newspaper the agent was found slumped over the wheel of an unmarked FBI car in September, and empty bags found in the vehicle may have contained drugs.
One of the cases affected is the prosecution of the alleged leader of a drug gang and 13 others, the Post says. Police had seized 11 pounds of drugs in raids of 26 homes, but now all the charges will be dropped. A defense lawyer in the case, Robert Jenkins, told the newspaper that the case was “very substantial.”
“I can only imagine the scope of the misconduct that occurred that led to something like this,” Jenkins said.
