Pubdate: Thu, 20 Dec 2001 Source: Denver Rocky Mountain News (CO) Copyright: 2001, Denver Publishing Co. Contact: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/371 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/corrupt.htm (Corruption) FEDERAL AND LOCAL DRUG, ROBBERY INVESTIGATIONS FOCUS ON TWO LAPD OFFICERS Two police officers are being investigated for allegedly committing a series of armed robberies, stealing narcotics and money from drug dealers. Authorities believe Officer Ruben Palomares, who was arrested in June in San Diego for the crimes, was partners with fellow Officer William Ferguson. Investigators liken the alleged crime duo's activities to those of Rafael Perez and Nino Durden, the former LAPD officers whose arrests launched the Rampart scandal. Anonymous law enforcement sources have told the Los Angeles Times that other officers, both from within the LAPD and outside agencies, are also being investigated, but they declined to provide details. Both Palomares, 32, and Ferguson, 29, have been suspended without pay. Their attorneys have denied the allegations against their clients. To date, neither man has been charged with the alleged rip-offs. "I think they're out there pounding the pavement, chasing ghosts," said Ferguson's attorney Robert Rico. Palomares' attorney declined comment. The investigation was launched in June after Palomares was arrested in San Diego for allegedly trying to buy 10 kilograms of cocaine from undercover agents. One of the men arrested in that sting, Alvin Moon, 26, confessed to investigators he accompanied Palomares on other crimes, including the attempted robbery of a drug dealer and a Huntington Park murder, the Times said. Moon picked Ferguson out of a lineup and told police Ferguson helped Palomares steal from drug dealers. Palomares is currently in custody in San Diego awaiting trial. Ferguson was relieved of duty without pay more than a year ago pending an internal disciplinary investigation into unrelated misconduct charges. Police Commission President Rick Caruso said the allegations against the pair "angered and troubled" him. "The investigation is going to take us wherever it needs to take us. My biggest concern right now is to make sure (LAPD detectives) have all the resources they need to fully investigate this and get to the bottom of it," Caruso said. Earlier this month, Moon pleaded guilty in federal court in connection with the San Diego cocaine deal. His attorney, Jeremy Warren, declined comment on whether Moon is cooperating with authorities. Palomares also is the subject of a separate FBI investigation, which is examining his role in the 1998 shooting of an alleged drug dealer. Former Officer Rafael Perez, the key figure in the LAPD's Rampart scandal, told investigators that the shooting was unjustified and covered up. Perez told of alleged corruption in the Rampart station as part of a plea agreement to reduce his sentence for stealing cocaine from police evidence lockers. - --- MAP posted-by: Josh