Here are a few of the most corrupt policemen around the world!
10 - Genaro García Luna He was one of Mexico's most celebrated cops,
known as the face of the country's war on drug cartels and a valued confidant for US
counter-narcotics officials.
He led Mexico's Federal Investigation Agency from 2001 to 2005 and served as secretary
of public security from 2006 to 2012.
He worked closely with the DEA to eliminate corruption in the Mexican police force and
stop the passage of drugs to the United States.
He fired hundreds of police officers for corruption in Mexico until it came out that he himself
was corrupt.
People started getting suspicious when it came out that he staged a police raid of kidnapping
victims in front of a television crew.
He also had numerous luxury homes, which seemed strange for a law enforcement officer's salary.
Mexican journalist Anabel Hernández was one of the first to reveal Luna's corruption and
received threats on her life.
She filed complaints with Mexico's human rights commission accusing Luna of attempting to
hire federal police officers to take her out.
In 2019, Luna was arrested and charged with accepting millions in bribes from the Sinaloa
drug cartel, previously run by none other than Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzman.
In exchange for briefcases full of cash, Luna helped the Sinaloa cartel transport products
and gave them classified information about ongoing investigations.
He was charged with three counts of conspiracy to traffic illegal substances and one count
of making false statements.
A former cartel member testified against him, saying that the bribes began in 2005.
Luna was one of the highest-ranking officials in Mexico to be indicted for trafficking in
the US judicial system.
His previous legacy as a hero in Mexico's war on the cartels is forever stained.
9 - Michael Dowd Michael Dowd joined the New York Police Department
in 1982 during the 80s drug epidemic.
He was assigned to the state's 75th precinct, dealing with over 100 violent crimes per year.
He saw how much money could be made in drug dealing—much more than his meager $600 per
week salary with the NYPD.
Within his first year on the job, he started accepting bribes.
He started stealing cash from crime scenes.
However, stealing turned into robbing dealers and selling drugs himself.
In 1986, he began working for a dealer named Adam Diaz, who was bringing in more than $1
million per week.
The Diaz organization paid Dowd $24,000 in exchange for intel about possible police raids,
transporting narcotics around the city, and providing dealers with guns and badges.
Dowd became a regular employee, making $8,000 per week, with an additional profit for selling
drugs on the side.
Dowd felt invincible and brought other police officers into the corruption ring, including
his partner, Ken Eurell.
But the euphoria didn't last long.
Suffolk County investigators intercepted phone conversations between him and a drug dealer
and discovered Dowd's double life.
Police found and arrested Dowd and Eurell while high and drunk on the clock.
Eurell agreed to wear a wire and record his conversations with Dowd in exchange for a
lesser sentence.
Dowd incriminated himself by talking about his plans to abduct a Colombian woman in exchange
for $200,000 worth of product.
He was indicted for conspiracy and drug-related charges, among other violent crimes.
It was later revealed that the city ignored 16 complaints against Dowd in previous years.
In 1994, he was convicted of racketeering and conspiracy to distribute narcotics.
He was sentenced to 16 years in jail but only served 12 and a half.
8 - The Golden Throne In July 2021, the Russian Investigative Committee,
or SK, leaked a video showing a colossal mansion adorned with extravagant gold interiors.
One of those items was a golden toilet.
The SK is a Russian governmental agency modeled after the FBI.
They conducted a police bribery probe and found that traffic police in the southern
Stavropol region of Russia were taking bribes in exchange for fake business permits.
These permits allowed drivers to pass through police checkpoints with unauthorized products
of grain and construction materials.
Police forces in Russia's North Caucasus collaborated in the anti-corruption investigation of southern
Stavropol.
SK conducted 80 searches of traffic police offices and homes and found vast amounts of
cash, luxury villas, and sports cars.
There were extravagant mansions with golden kitchens and, yes, a golden toilet.
Head of traffic police in the region, Colonel Alexei Safonov, was arrested along with his
predecessor, Alexander Khinshteyn, and six others.
More than 35 traffic police officers in the area were detained due to the corruption scandal.
Some politicians compared their operation to mafia activity since they profited from
the black market.
It's estimated that Safonov and his team made over 19 million rubles or $255,000 in bribes.
If found guilty, Safonov will face up to 15 years behind bars.
7 - The Mafia Cops When the Five Families of the American mafia
ran New York City in the 1980s and 90s, they did so with the help of two NYPD officers.
These two police officers, Stephen Caracappa and Louis Eppolito, worked primarily for the
Lucchese and Gambino crime families and became known as "mafia cops."
Caracappa worked in Brooklyn's organized crime unit and then as a private investigator until
he retired in the 1990s.
Eppolito had family members in the Gambino crime family.
But when he interviewed for the NYPD, he falsely claimed that he had no relation to the infamous
mobsters.
In 1983, Eppolito was suspected and cleared of forwarding classified NYPD intel to a Gambino
relative.
By 1985, the federal government was aware of Caracappa and Eppolito's involvement in
organized crime in New York City.
Both officers used illegal methods in conducting their police work.
According to mafia underboss Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso, of the Lucchese family, he and mob
boss Vittoria "Vic" Amuso paid the officers $375,000 in bribes dating back to 1985.
They also paid Caracappa and Eppolito to kidnap a member of the Gambino family as revenge
for an attempted hit on Casso.
Caracappa and Eppolito then took the life of a member of the Lucchese family, who Casso
suspected was an informant.
Casso then ordered them to take out Gambino member Eddie Lino in retaliation for the passing
of Paul Castellano.
When the mafia families were indicted in the mid-1990s, Caracappa and Eppolito conveniently
retired to Las Vegas but remained involved in organized crime.
Casso hired them to carry out a hit on the new head of the Gambino family, John Gotti,
but the plan failed.
There was another plan to take out Lucchese family underboss, Stephen Crea, and Gambino
family underboss, Salvatore "Sammy the Bull" Gravano.
Gravano entered the Witness Protection Program but was later arrested for drug trafficking
before Caracappa and Eppolito could get to him.
After a long investigation, the mafia cops were arrested in 2005 and charged with racketeering,
obstruction of justice, extortion, and eight counts of murder.
Eppolito was sentenced to life imprisonment plus 100 years, and Carcappa was sentenced
to life plus 80 years.
Both passed away in prison.
6 - Dmitry Zakharchenko In Russia, an anti-corruption police officer
was jailed for possessing more than $139 million in cash bribes.
Colonel Dmitry Zakharchenko was the deputy chief for the General Directorate of Economic
Security and Anti-Corruption at Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Then, he was found with 9 billion rubles worth of foreign currency at his properties in Moscow.
The final bribe that took him down involved a seafood restaurant called La Mare, which
faced health violations and failed inspections.
Owner Mehdi Douss scheduled a meeting with Zakharchenko where the Colonel demanded $5
million, which was eventually reduced to $800,000, in exchange for overlooking violations and
canceling inspections.
A few years later, he and a friend returned to the restaurant demanding discounts of up
to 50% and racked up $46,000 in savings.
In 2016, he further abused his power by warning a finance friend about incoming police searches
to her property for tax evasion investigations.
Zakharchenko was arrested and found guilty of accepting large-scale bribes and obstructing
justice and was sentenced to 13 years in prison with a $1.8 million fine.
5 - Sei Kato A former police officer in Kanagawa, Japan,
named Sei Kato, went on trial for accepting bribes from funeral homes to set them up with
families of the recently deceased.
Whenever he received a call involving a dead body, he would call the funeral home so they
could get the business.
Kato probably didn't act alone—all six police stations that Kato was associated with were
involved with the funeral home bribes.
Kanagawa is unique in treating dead bodies because corpses are handled by private companies
instead of by law enforcement.
So that's why Kanagawa is the only area in Japan that faces this kind of corruption problem.
Kato pleaded guilty and explained that he received the bribes via gift certificates,
prepaid cards, and beer tickets.
He received about 2-million-yen worth of vouchers.
Now, he faces up to two and a half years of imprisonment.
4 - Atsushi Kubo Kyoto, Japan is unique for its rich culture
and history.
All leadership positions in this city are prestigious.
However, people still find ways to abuse their power.
Kyoto police charged Atsushi Kubo with bribery after accepting bribes while in charge of
the Kyoto City Children and Youth Support.
While auditing a preschool, Kubo was accused of accepting a gold watch valued at almost
$4,000 from the chairman of an association that oversees preschool facilities.
While investigating Kubo, police also found a koban in his possession.
Kobans are oval-shaped gold coins once used as currency in Japan's history.
Even though this type of currency has been phased out, these coins are still used as
status symbols and portrayed in pop culture.
3 - John Joseph Connolly Jr.
John Joseph Connolly Jr. was an FBI agent who was convicted of racketeering and obstruction
of justice related to his partnership with the infamous James "Whitey” Bulger.
During his FBI career, Connolly mainly focused on organized crime.
He was praised for his performance and dressed the part.
But he wasn't the "good guy" he claimed to be.
While law enforcement officers were trying to imprison Bulger, Connolly protected him
and Steve Flemmi from prosecution by letting them know when the cops were coming.
In 2005, he was indicted for taking the lives of John B. Callahan and Roger Wheeler.
Bulger and Flemmi apparently ordered the hits after Connolly told them classified information
about imminent police investigations that could incriminate them.
Over the years, Connolly received $230,000 from Bulger and Flemmi, but had to cut down
his payments to avoid suspicion.
In 2009, he was sentenced to 40 years in prison but was granted a medical release at 81 years
old in 2021.
Physicians told the court that Connolly has about one year to live based on his diabetes
and melanoma diagnoses.
2 - Joe Ferrari One day, Thai lawyer Sittra Biebangkerd received
a mysterious Facebook message from a junior police officer.
It contained a link to security camera footage of a suspect being roughed up in police custody.
Biebangkerd shared the video, and it went viral in Thailand.
Six police officers were quickly arrested in connection to the video.
In the leaked security footage, Jeerapong Thanapat, detained on suspicion of selling
drugs, passed away while police tried to extort $82,000 from him.
Some officers tried to resuscitate him, but it was too late.
Rumors of Thanapat's death while in police custody were excused as a drug overdose.
But the CCTV footage, with now over 5 million views, proved otherwise.
The video was shocking and disturbing, but according to Biebangkerd, he had to share
it with the public for one simple reason.
Unless there’s media attention and public outcry in Thailand, people don't investigate
police crimes very quickly.
The police chief involved, Colonel Thitisan Utthanaphon, is thought to be the main offender.
An investigation of his home revealed a huge estate with beautiful landscaping and several
garages containing 29 luxury cars.
Hence his infamous new nickname, "Joe Ferrari."
His collection included a rare Lamborghini, a Ferrari, four Porsches, six Mercedes-Benz,
three Audis, and a Bentley.
Mr. Ferrari was accused of extortion and corruption and went on the run.
All of Thailand looked for him until he eventually turned himself in to the police.
Ferrari came from a modest family and had a meager $1,700 per month salary, nowhere
near enough to afford all his luxury cars.
But no one would have questioned it if not for the criminal case.
He spent most of his career policing the illicit drug market and confiscating illegal luxury
car imports.
In the past decade, Mr. Ferrari seized 410 cars and received a cut of their sale price
at auction, amounting to about $24 million.
The video shocked the Thai public and encouraged them to call for police reform.
Ferrari said he never intended to harm the suspect.
He was charged with Thanapat's passing, deprivation of liberty, and abuse of power.
Of course, he held a press conference where he denied all charges.
Unfortunately, this is just the tip of the iceberg for Thailand's corrupt justice system.
To learn more about how deep Joe Ferarri's corruption really ran, check out this full
video!
1 - Joseph Floyd In 2012, Florida policeman Major Joseph Floyd
of Crestview Police Department in Florida was indicted for harassing colleagues, forcing
other officers to hurt suspects, forging incident reports, altering testimonies, soliciting
certain "favors" from town residents, roughing up handcuffed suspects and prisoners, intimidating
community members, and purposefully crashing his car into a Pregnant women's vehicle.
The list goes on.
Floyd joined the Crestview police force in 2007, despite abusing his power for more than
a decade in other police forces.
Before he became a policeman, he was arrested for battery, disorderly conduct, and assaulting
a law enforcement agent.
He was put in charge of the Crestview Street Crimes Unit, responsible for investigating
drugs and gangs.
His corruption began as soon as he took the job.
He used excessive force whenever he got the opportunity and encouraged other officers
to do the same.
One time, he planted evidence on a suspect and charged him with possession.
He also name-called and harassed female officers.
One woman was so afraid of Floyd that she refused to press charges, fearing for her
own safety.
He staged drug busts for small quantities of marijuana for media attention and encouraged
officers to plant drugs to get more prisoners in trouble.
Officers were threatened with termination or demotion if they didn't follow his orders.
He bragged about what he did to suspects and prisoners.
He repeatedly told other officers that he didn't care about peoples' civil rights.
Thankfully, he was sentenced to prison for 12 years in 2013.
Unfortunately, this is hardly rare for Florida law enforcement.
Many officers who are under investigation for similar investigations are allowed to
stay on the police force or even given second chances if convicted.
In fact, this made up about 2% of all employed officers in Florida since 1988.
Click to watch one of these next videos!
And let us know in the comment section whether or not you feel your local police department
is corrupt!