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YOU’RE WATCHING KOAT T ACTION 7 NEWS TARGET 7 INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE POLICE DEPARTMENT HIRED A FELON A MAN CONVICTED YEARS AGO NOW HE WORKED FOR APD FROM APRIL TO THE END OF LAST YEAR. WE UNCOVERED A PAPER TRAIL SHOWING HOW THE DEPARTMENT LEARNED ABOUT HIS. US BUT HE DIDN’T LEAVE THE POSITION UNTIL TARGE 7 STARTED ASKING QUESTIONS. THE MAN IN THESE PICTURES IS A FELONY CONVICTIONS IN CALIFORNIA, TEXAS AND ILLINOIS. THE CHARGE IS FORGERY MISUSE OF A CREDIT CARD AND ROBBERY AND HERE’S ANOTHER PICTURE OF THE SAME MAN. THIS ONE’S NOT A MUG SHOT THOUGH. THIS PICTURE WAS ON A MERE CHAPELS IDENTIFICATION BADGE WHEN HE WORKED FOR APD. HOW DID THIS SLIP THROUGH THE CRACKS? YOU’RE THE POLICE DEPARTMENT THE ALBUQUERQUE POLICE. APARTMENT HIRED A MERE CHAPEL A MAN CONVICTED THREE TIMES IN THREE STATES. HE WAS A HIGH LEVEL MANAGEMENT LEVEL CIVILIAN EMPLOYEE OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT SHAUN WILLOUGHBY REPRESENTS THE POLICE OFFICERS UNION AND EXPLAINS WHEN A MERE CHAPEL WORK FOR A TD. HIS JOB WAS IMPORTANT HE MADE SURE APD WAS FOLLOWING THE RULES. HE WAS A LIAISON BETWEEN THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE AND APD. HE MADE 72 GRAND A YEAR AND WORKED AT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT HEADQUARTE ON THE MANAGEMENT OF THIS. EAST DEPARTMENT CITY PERSONNEL RULES SAY YOU ARE INELIGIBLE FOR EMPLOYMENT IF YOU’RE FRAUDULENT OR IF YOU MAKE A FALSE STATEMENT ON AN APPLICATION OR IF YOU HAVE A PRIOR FELONY CONVICTION INVOLVING MORAL TURPITUDE APD MEMOS OBTAINED BY TARGET 7 SHOW DURING THE HIRING PROCESS IN APRIL OF LAST YEAR CHAPEL CHECK THIS BOX INDICATING. HE HAD NEVER BEEN CONVICTED OF A FELONY ON THE FORM. HE SAID HE WAS BORN IN 1981, BUT LOOK AT HIS DRIVER’S LICENSE. IT SAYS HE WAS BORN IN 1980 AND A MEMO. INVESTIGATORS SAYS CHAPEL DIDN’T USE HIS OWN SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER ON A DOCUMENT USED FOR A BACKGROUND CHECK. THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN CAUGHT BY THIS POLICE AGENCY AND IT WASN’T CAUGHT AND THAT’S A PROBLEM ACCORDING TO EMAILS OBTAINED BY TARGET 7 WITH THE INFORMATION CHAPEL PROVIDED. HE PASSED A BACKGROUND CHECK AND WAS ELIGIBLE FOR HIRE. WE UNCOVERED A DEPARTMENT MEMO SHOWING AFTER CHAPEL WAS HIRED THE DEPARTMENT GOT A TIP ABOUT HIS RECORD A DAY LATER A POLICE DEPARTMENT EMAIL FROM CHAPEL SUPERVISOR SAID BUT WAS NOT AVAILABLE TO DO HIS JOB DUE TO UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES THIS MEMO WAS WRITTEN BY AN INVESTIGATOR IN OCTOBER 6 MONTHS AFTER HE WAS HIRED EXPLAINING TO AN APD COMMANDER HOW CHAPEL PASSED A BACKGROUND CHECK THIS IS A POLICE DEPARTMENT WHERE INTEGRITY AND TRUST AND HONESTY MEANS SOMETHING EMAIL SHOW CHAPEL RETURN TO OCTOBER 14TH, SEVEN DAYS AFTER A PREVIOUS EMAIL SAID HE WAS NOT AVAILABLE, BUT THINGS CHANGE WHEN TARGET 7 STARTED ASKING QUESTIONS TARGET 7 SUBMITTED AN OPEN RECORDS REQUEST FOR CHAPELS EMPLOYMENT RECORDS. WE GOT THOSE DOCUMENTS, DECEMBER 9TH AND ACCORDING TO A POLICE DEPARTMENT EMAIL. THAT’S THE DAY CHAPEL RESIGNED FROM APD HI, I’M HERE TARGET 7 INVESTIGATIVE PRODUCER WANT TO TALK TO CHAPEL. I WANT TO TALK TO YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHY YOU LEFT APD. HE INSISTED HE DIDN’T DO. ANYTHING WRONG? HE SAID LEGALLY. HE DIDN’T THINK HE NEEDED TO CHECK THE BOX INDICATING. HE WAS A FELON BECAUSE THE CONVICTIONS WERE SO OLD HIS FELONY CONVICTIONS HAPPENED IN 2002. 2003 AND 2007. OH MY DO MY BUT I CAN TALK TO YOU IF YOU TAKE THAT AWAY. I COULD TALK TO YOU. HE WOULDN’T EXPLAIN WHY HE USED DIFFERENT SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS AND DATES OF BIRTH ON HIS EMPLOYMENT RECORDS. HE TOLD US EVEN THOUGH HE DOESN’T WORK FOR THE CITY ANYMORE. WE NEEDED TO DIRECT OUR QUESTIONS TO THE POLICE CHIEF AND CITY ATTORNEY SO WE DID THEY WOULDN’T TALK FACE-TO-FACE BUT SENT A STATEMENT THE CITY CANNOT COMMENT ON PERSONNEL MATTERS APD TYPICALLY RUNS BACKGROUND CHECKS, WHICH ARE CONDUCTED BY A ERIC AND WHICH GENERALLY PROVIDE CRIMINAL HISTORY INFORMATION FOR THE LAST SEVEN YEARS HOW MANY PEOPLE SLIP THROUGH THE CRACKS? ARE WE AUDITING THIS? WHAT ARE WE DOING TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING IN THE FUTURE NOW THE POLICE UNION WANTS EVERY CIVILIAN EMPLOYEE HIRED BY THE POLICE DEPARTMENT IN THE PAST YEAR TO HAVE THEIR BACKGROUND CHECKS AUDITED SHELBY CASHMAN. KOAT.COM 7 NEWS OFF-CAMERA CHAPPELLE TOLD US. HE INTERVIEWED FOR HIS POSITION BECAUSE HE KNEW TWO COMMANDERS AT APD WHO REACHED OUT TO HIM ABOUT THE JOB ON HIS RESUME. HE LISTS A HIGH-RANKING OFFICER AS A REFERENCE WHEN TARGET 7 ASKED FOR A LIST OF PEOPLE INTERVIEWED FOR THE

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The Albuquerque Police Department unknowingly hired a three-time felon and allowed him to continue working in a high-ranking position after it learned he gave a wrong birth date and Social Security number when he was hired, according to documents obtained by Target 7 through an open records request.Amir Chapel was APD’s Policy and Compliance Manger. He resigned from the position on Dec. 9 the same day the city released documents, memos and emails to Target 7 about his employment.The city has refused to answer questions about Chapel.According to a department memo and court records, Chapel has been convicted of forgery in Texas, misuse of a credit card in Illinois and robbery in California. The convictions occurred in the early to mid 2000s.“How did this slip through the cracks,” asked Shaun Willoughby, president of the Albuquerque Police Officers’ Association. “You're the police department!”Chapel’s job, which paid him $72,000 a year, was to make sure APD’s policies were up to date and followed the city’s settlement agreement with the Department of Justice. He worked at APD headquarters. “He was a high-level management, civilian employee of the police department,” Willoughby said. “This falls on the management of this police department.”According to city personnel rules, employees are ineligible for employment if they are fraudulent or make a false statement on an application or if they have a prior conviction of a felony involving moral turpitude. APD memos obtained by Target 7 show during the hiring process in April 2019, Chapel checked a box on a city form indicating he had never been convicted of a felony. On the form he said he was born in 1981. But, his driver's license says he was born in 1980. And a memo from investigators says Chapel didn't use his own Social Security number on a document used for a background check ."This should have been caught by this police agency and it wasn't caught and that is a problem," Willoughby said.According to emails obtained by Target 7, with the information Chapel provided, he passed a background check and was "eligible for hire.”After Chapel was hired, the department got a tip about his record, according to a department memo. A day later, Chapel's supervisor sent an email to all APD commanders and deputy chiefs saying Chapel was "not available" to do his job due to "unforeseen circumstances". “This is a police department where integrity and trust and honesty mean something,” Willoughby said.Emails show Chapel returned to work on Oct. 14 seven days after a previous email that said he was not available and after APD learned of his felony convictions and the discrepancies on his paperwork.But things changed when Target 7 started asking questions.Target 7 submitted an open records request for Chapel's employment records. It took five weeks for the city to release them. They were released on the same day Chapel resigned.Chapel spoke to Target 7 briefly on camera. He then agreed to answer questions without a camera present. Chapel insisted he didn't do anything wrong, he said legally he didn't think he needed to check the box indicating he was a felon because the convictions were so old. His felony convictions happened in 2002, 2003 and 2007. “Oh I didn't lie,” he said. Chapel wouldn't explain why he used different Social Security numbers and dates of birth on his employment records. Chapel said he never interviewed for his position because he knew two commanders at APD who reached out to him about the job. On his resume, he lists high-ranking officer as a reference. When Target 7 asked for a list of people interviewed for the job we were told a list didn't exist.Chapel said even though he doesn't work for the city anymore, we need needed to direct our questions to the police chief and city attorney.The city refused to do an interview, but sent a statement saying:“The city cannot comment on personnel matters. APD typically runs background checks, which are conducted by a contractor, and which generally provide criminal history information for the last seven years.”The police union wants every civilian employee hired by the police department in the past year to have their background checks audited. “How many people slipped through the cracks?” Willoughby asked. “Are we auditing this? What are we doing to prevent this from happening in the future?”