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dwpineal
Psychedelic Artist



Registered: 07/20/06
Posts: 4,667
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Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges 1
#13977763 - 02/17/11 07:14 AM (13 years, 17 days ago) |
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http://www.insidebayarea.com/top-stories/ci_17404537
Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges
MARTINEZ -- The commander of a Contra Costa County drug task force and the head of a high-profile, Concord-based private investigative firm were arrested Wednesday on allegations they conspired to sell drugs, authorities said.
The revelation and potential blow to the credibility of any investigations involving the two are still being gauged.
Norman Wielsch, commander of the state Department of Justice's Central Contra Costa County Narcotics Enforcement Team, or CNET, and Chris Butler, who runs the investigative firm Butler and Associates, were arrested together in Benicia by federal agents Wednesday morning after an investigation that began in January, said DOJ special agent Michelle Gregory, spokeswoman for the Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement.
Both men were booked into County Jail in Martinez on as many as 25 suspected felony offenses, including possessing, transporting and selling marijuana, methamphetamine and steroids, and embezzlement, second-degree burglary and conspiracy.
Wielsch, a 49-year-old Antioch resident, is being held on $660,000 bail. Butler, 49, of Concord, is being held on $840,000 bail. They are both former veteran Antioch police officers who worked from the late 1990s to when they entered their respective positions.
Both men declined jail interview requests Wednesday. Media inquiries on Butler's website were referred to a Beverly Hills public relations agency, which said it no longer represented him.
Wielsch has been with the Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement for 12 years. To Gregory's knowledge, this is the first time a DOJ narcotics agent has been arrested under these circumstances.
"It's not reflective of our agency or our agents," she said.
There was no immediate word on who would replace Wielsch as head of the county task force, Gregory said.
As CNET commander, one of dozens of task forces run by the DOJ and staffed by officers from local police departments, Wielsch oversaw hundreds, if not thousands, of drug investigations in Contra Costa County.
Wielsch's arrest could have ramifications on criminal cases litigated in Contra Costa, said Concord private attorney Dirk Manoukian, a former deputy district attorney who has both prosecuted and defended individuals in CNET cases.
As the drug task force supervisor, Wielsch would traditionally have a limited role in investigations. As city budgets have dwindled, however, police agencies in the county have assigned fewer officers to the unit, which could have necessitated a more active role by Wielsch, Manoukian said.
"Your main concern from the standpoint of a prosecutor or a defense attorney is how centrally involved was he in the fact-gathering aspect in the case," Manoukian said. "With any fact that you can't corroborate through something else, or you can't prove through something else, you are going to have a credibility problem.
"Even though, right now, there are just pending charges, there are going to be police reports that allege serious felony conduct," Manoukian said. "If he's named as a witness (in another criminal case), a defense attorney will get those reports and (present them as evidence). They don't need a felony conviction."
Butler has made a name for himself as the head of his self-named private investigative firm, which he opened in 2002. Last year, his firm was adorned with national media attention for employing mothers as private investigators, touting their strengths in intuition and persuasion. The aptly called "PI Moms" are the subject of an upcoming reality television show, according to their website.
DOJ agents began investigating Wielsch and Butler in January after receiving a tip about potential drug sales, Gregory said. On Wednesday, agents were executing search warrants around Contra Costa County related to the case.
The Contra Costa District Attorney's Office will likely review and assess any charges brought against Wielsch and Butler, Gregory said.
No one reached at the District Attorney's Office on Wednesday would comment.
Edited by dwpineal (02/17/11 07:14 AM)
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Mushie23
Entheogens



Registered: 11/19/10
Posts: 789
Loc: PNW
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Re: Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges [Re: dwpineal]
#13977829 - 02/17/11 07:44 AM (13 years, 17 days ago) |
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Seems like every law enforcement agency have a few crooked cops! No line of law out there can say "our agency is clean and good", cause it would be a line of bullshit.
-------------------- Eat Mushrooms----plug into life and nature.
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Dave Bowman
Albert Hoffmans Apprentice




Registered: 08/30/07
Posts: 2,104
Loc: Your Imagination
Last seen: 4 months, 25 days
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Re: Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges [Re: Mushie23]
#13977880 - 02/17/11 08:06 AM (13 years, 16 days ago) |
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Stories like these, unfortunately, are all too common.
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SuperD
Cacti junky


Registered: 10/05/03
Posts: 6,648
Loc: The bridgesii bridge
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Re: Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges [Re: dwpineal]
#13977896 - 02/17/11 08:12 AM (13 years, 16 days ago) |
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Cops get busted for shit like this all the time. And these are only the stories we hear about because they slipped up and got caught. Just imagine how many are out there flying under the radar. If we had real numbers to go by, I bet they'd be staggering.
--------------------
   D Manoa said: I need to stop spending all my money on plants and take up a cheaper hobby, like heroin. Looking for Rauhocereus riosaniensis seeds or live specimen(s), me if you have any for trade
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wortiesbo



Registered: 03/18/06
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Loc: new vegas
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Re: Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges [Re: SuperD]
#13978169 - 02/17/11 10:03 AM (13 years, 16 days ago) |
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"It's not reflective of our agency or our agents"
the hell it isnt...
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guest1
Mycena




Registered: 05/25/09
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Re: Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges [Re: wortiesbo]
#13978288 - 02/17/11 10:38 AM (13 years, 16 days ago) |
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Quote:
wortiesbo said: "It's not reflective of our agency or our agents"
the hell it isnt...
  
Just like what was said.
Let's give him the DEATH PENALTY! muhahahaha.
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Cognitive_Shift
CS actual




Registered: 12/11/07
Posts: 29,591
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Re: Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges [Re: guest1]
#13979369 - 02/17/11 03:23 PM (13 years, 16 days ago) |
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HOW DID HE GET CAUGHT!!!???
What a dumb ass!
If i was a cop i wouldn't even start hustle drugs because of how addicting it is... especially since you basically can't get busted because you are the police... this dumb ass managed to get busted tho 
He is gonna have to be in ad-seg for his whole life if he goes to the pen.
-------------------- L'enfer est plein de bonnes volontés et désirs
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usefulidiot13
Dark Passenger



Registered: 05/22/07
Posts: 11,583
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Re: Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges [Re: Cognitive_Shift]
#13979401 - 02/17/11 03:30 PM (13 years, 16 days ago) |
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haha yeah i bet he started out as a normal cop and then started thinking "hey, i think there IS something to this drug buisness after all....hmmmmm"
glad the feds actually did some GOOD work.
-------------------- What Would Dexter Do?
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Learyfan
It's the psychedelic movement!



Registered: 04/20/01
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Re: Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges [Re: Dave Bowman]
#13984361 - 02/18/11 12:17 PM (13 years, 15 days ago) |
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Quote:
Synthettek said: Stories like these, unfortunately, are all too common.
I don't think it's unfortunate that he was caught. I'm lol'ing.
-------------------- -------------------------------- Mp3 of the month: The Fe-Fi-Four Plus 2 - I Wanna Come Back (From the World of LSD)
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Shroomerette
Stranger
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Re: Head of drug task force arrested on drug charges [Re: Learyfan] 1
#13984968 - 02/18/11 02:11 PM (13 years, 15 days ago) |
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Here's another article based on the same story:
Quote:
Hundreds of Drug Cases At Risk After CoCo Drug Cop’s Arrest
By Joe Vazquez, CBS 5
MARTINEZ (CBS 5) — Hundreds of drug cases could be in jeopardy following the arrest of the commander of the Central Contra Costa County Narcotic Enforcement Team on 22 drug-related felonies, defense lawyers told CBS 5 on Thursday.
Cmdr. Norman Wielsch, who has been with the state justice department’s Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement for the past 12 years and supervised the local drug task force known as CNET, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of distributing marijuana, methamphetamine and steroids.
Wielsch is accused of stealing drugs his own officers confiscated and allegedly resold them with the help of his friend – private investigator Chris Butler – who was also arrested Wednesday.
Sources close to the investigation told CBS 5 that the pair were caught in an undercover sting. Both men were set to be arraigned in court on Friday afternoon.
“I will tell you the legal community is certainly shocked by these allegations as well they should be,” said Michael Cardoza, a local defense lawyer hired to represent Wielsch.
The Contra Costa County Public Defender’s Office indicated that hundreds of drug prosecutions stemming from task force investigations may be in jeopardy of dismissal.
“We have begun to go through our caseloads and pull out the cases that are open and pending charge, where CNET was the investigating agency, and we’ve uncovered a dozen of those cases. I expect there will be many more,” said Robin Lipetzky, the chief public defender.
The investigation is ongoing, but so far there is no indication that any other law enforcement personnel were involved in Wielsch and Butler’s alleged activities, according to the California Department of Justice.
“The best I can say is he’s devastated,” said Cardoza of Wielsch. “We are waiting to see what if any charges will be brought by the prosecuting agency.”
(© 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
-------------------- Leaving the shroomery forever
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