BALTIMORE, MD – The highest ranking of the Baltimore police officers who conspired to rob citizens was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison. A judge in Baltimore announced the sentence Thursday in U.S. District Court.

Sgt. Wayne Earl Jenkins, 37, of Middle River, headed a special gun trace task force that has since been disbanded. Its aim was to take guns off the street but instead, authorities discovered several of its members had been abusing their power to falsify reports, steal from citizens and commit other crimes. Jenkins was the highest ranking of seven officers from the Baltimore Police Department who entered guilty pleas for their roles in a racketeering conspiracy.



He pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy; one count of racketeering; two counts of robbery; one count of destruction, alteration, or falsification of records in a federal investigation; and four counts of deprivation of rights under color of law. Jenkins admitted to participating in seven robberies between May 2011 and August 2016, according to his plea agreement. Among the offenses to which Jenkins admitted were the following:

Stealing drugs from those he arrested and selling them

Tipping off six co-conspirators that they were being investigated

Putting two innocent men in jail after planting drugs in 2010

Stealing illegal dirt bikes from riders, then selling them

Falsifying overtime reports

Stealing 12 pounds of high-grade marijuana intercepted by law enforcement in the mail

Stealing prescription medicines from pharmacy looters after the April 2015 riots He admitted to obstructing law enforcement by telling the others involved in the racketeering conspiracy about possible investigations. While the seven officers in the federal probe were detained at the Howard County Detention Center, prosecutors said he told his six co-conspirators to "keep their mouths shut" and "stick to the story." Based on his plea agreement, Jenkins could have been sentenced to 20 to 30 years in prison.

U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake sentenced Jenkins gave him a sentence between the two, at 25 years, followed by three years of supervised release.