A brawling federal trial in which a Miami police sergeant has fought against accusations by fellow officers that he’s corrupt will wrap up Wednesday with closing arguments followed by jury deliberations.
Miami police Sgt. Raul Iglesias, who ran a drug-fighting squad, testified earlier this week that a string of government witnesses — including four detectives from his unit — all lied while accusing him of planting dope on a suspect and stealing drugs and money from street dealers.
Iglesias, 40, former commander of the Crime Suppression Unit, denied again and again that he ever did anything illegal on the job, including asking detectives for “throw-down dope” to plant on the suspect in a downtown Miami parking lot in early 2010.
“Absolutely not,” Iglesias testified, disputing the recent testimony of two detectives. “That’s a ridiculous statement,” he said, calling his former colleagues “liars.’’
Iglesias further testified he never told a third detective that it was OK to pay confidential informants with drugs.
The detective, Roberto Asanza, testified he did just that in May 2010, with Iglesias sitting by his side.
But Iglesias denied the confidential informant was paid with a small baggie of cocaine after a bust in the Allapattah area. Asanza, after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor possession charge, received a probationary sentence last year.
“I have no knowledge that he ever paid [the informant] with drugs,’’ Iglesias testified.
Iglesias, who faces nine counts of conspiracy to possess cocaine, violating suspects’ civil rights, obstruction of justice and making false statements, seemed unflappable as his defense attorney, Rick Diaz, questioned him Monday. Iglesias was relieved of duty with pay in May 2010.
But on cross examination, federal prosecutor Ricardo Del Toro mocked the 18-year veteran officer’s testimony, saying that if he is to be believed, that means five government witnesses lied and he is the only one telling the truth.
“That’s No. 5,” Del Toro declared in astonishment at one point, as Iglesias accused one more witness of lying about his alleged wrongdoing.
Earlier in the trial, CSU detectives Suberto Hernandez and Luis Valdes told jurors that Iglesias asked the pair if they had any “throw-down dope” to plant on a drug suspect after a search of the man during a Jan. 27, 2010, surveillance operation turned up no drugs.
“He looked at myself and Hernandez and he asked for throw-down dope,” said Valdes, an officer for nearly nine years.
“I said, ‘We don’t do that here. Nobody on this team does it.’’’
Closing arguments on tap today in Miami police sergeant’s drug-corruption trial
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Closing arguments on tap today in Miami police sergeant’s drug-corruption trial
