Houston Officer Lied In Affidavit Before Deadly Raid, Police Chief Art Acevedo Says
HOUSTON (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — Houston's police chief says a lead investigator lied in an arrest affidavit justifying a drug raid on a home in which two residents were killed and four officers were wounded during a gun battle.
Chief Art Acevedo said during a news conference Friday, the investigator falsely claimed in the affidavit that an informant obtained heroin from the home.
Police records indicate the heroin was actually obtained elsewhere.
The investigator was one of the officers who were shot in the gunfight January 28 that killed 59-year-old Dennis Tuttle and 58-year-old Rhogena Nicholas.
The investigator remained hospitalized Friday.
Acevedo praised the investigator in the hours after the raid as being "tough as nails," but he said Friday that there's a "high probability that there will be a criminal charge" brought against him.
The Chief said an internal review must now be conducted of his department's narcotics division, adding authorities must determine whether other cases involving the investigator may be compromised based on his actions shortly before the raid.
"We will report back the good, the bad and the ugly," said Chief Acevedo.
Authorities still believe the residents were involved in criminal activity, but Acevedo says the case now is undermined.
(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
