Advertisement Baltimore County Police: Cadet stole $130K+ in drugs, cash Police: Nicholas Ishmael, 20, stole drugs, cash evidence from police vault Share Shares Copy Link Copy

A Baltimore County police cadet has been arrested and charged in connection with stealing tens of thousands of dollars, drugs and cash from the Baltimore County Police Department evidence room, police announced Wednesday.Mobile users tap here for videoBaltimore County police said they became aware of a problem in its evidence room in early April, when a homicide detective tried to retrieve drug evidence from their Evidence Management Units narcotics vault inside the Public Safety Building at 700 E. Joppa Road in Towson for a case that was being tried in Circuit Court.When the drugs could not be found, the chief’s office was notified, and Chief Jim Johnson immediately ordered an internal investigation and comprehensive audit, which is being supervised by Col. Joseph Burris.Police said an internal investigation, which is ongoing, led detectives to 20-year-old Nicholas Michael Ishmael. At that point, the Narcotics Section joined Internal Affairs in a weeks-long criminal investigation that included surveillance of the evidence room and of Ishmael and two family members. Two of Ishmael's cousins also face drug charges. They have not yet been identified.Investigators determined that the evidence was being specifically targeted for the oxycodone that was seized by police after criminal incidents, according to court documents.Court documents said controlled dangerous substance evidence is packaged in a similar manner by police, but generally consists of items being placed in a heavy, clear, plastic envelope which is then heat sealed, eliminating any opportunity to easily reopen it.Members packaging the CDS evidence place their names, ID number, date, time and case number in permanent ink prior to being heat sealed. The clear plastic envelope is referred to as a K-pack and the ones containing oxycodone were determined to be taken from the Evidence Management Unit, according to court documents. It was these K-packs containing drugs that were stolen by Ishmael, according to court documents.On June 2, police investigators, members of the Internal Affairs Division and Vice Narcotics Section participated in a full audit of pharmaceutical evidence secured in the narcotics vaults within the Evidence Management Unit and noticed four more cases, involving oxycodone K-pack evidence, that were stolen.On June 13, Internal Affairs Section and investigators were notified that two more cases went missing since the audit took place on June 2. These two cases of K-packs were accounted for during the audit, but were removed without authorization or legitimate purpose, according to court documents.Court documents show on June 16 police obtained a search and seizure warrant for Ishmael.Police said around 4 p.m. Tuesday, Baltimore County Police Department's Narcotics unit members executed the search and seizure warrant on Ishmael as he left his assignment working at the Evidence Management Unit in the Public Safety Building. Police said they found $40,100 in cash evidence in Ishmael's backpack when they searched it during his arrest.Authorities also found a black Samsung cellphone and a fraudulent North Carolina Driver's License with the name and picture of Ishmael.A search of Ishmael's home turned up additional drugs, cash, empty K-packs, police documents and other items related to the investigation, according to court documents.Police said the ongoing criminal investigation shows that Ishmael stole cocaine, morphine, oxycodone and alprazolam. The evidence was stolen from 15 narcotics cases, including one homicide case. The homicide is the Nov. 25, 2012, shooting of Alsawab Sawab in Towson.Court documents cite that while Ishmael was employed as a cadet, numerous items of evidence were meticulously targeted and deceptively removed and stolen from the Baltimore County Police Evidence Management Unit vaults from Aug. 26, 2013, until June 24.According to court documents, detectives believe that Ishmael intended to sell the stolen drugs, which in all total had an illegal street value for distribution of more than $130,000.Ishmael is charged with 10 counts, including conspiracy to commit theft from $10,000 to $100,000; theft from $10,000 to $100,000; possession of narcotics; and possession with intent to distribute narcotics. He was being held at the Baltimore County Detention Center on $650,000 bail, but was released later Wednesday, police said.There may be additional charges against Ishmael who was served with termination papers Wednesday."This is a serious internal issue," Johnson said during a Wednesday afternoon news conference. "To say that I am deeply troubled by this serious breach is an understatement. Our citizens depend on this agency to solve crimes and make sure that criminals are successfully prosecuted, and I want them to know that we have devoted and will continue to devote all possible resources to investigating this situation."Also, Johnson said he is "disappointed that the conduct of one employee could reflect badly on this agency and the 2,500 Baltimore County Police Department officers and civilians who work with integrity every single day."Police said they do not believe that other cadets or officers were involved with Ishmael in the thefts, nor is there any indication of any technological or procedural failures in the evidence room."We are confident that responsibility for this breach rests with one civilian employee," Johnson said.Police said their audit began shortly after the first theft was discovered and has involved thousands of hours of investigation and in the past 24 hours, officers have examined 8,000 cases. All but four of those cases, which involve $450 in cash unaccounted for, have been reconciled, police said. There is no evidence at this time that Ishmael is involved in those cases, but the investigation continues.An additional 19,000 cases still must be audited, police said.About The Baltimore County Police Department Evidence ManagementThe Evidence Management Unit is responsible for the safekeeping, proper storage, records management and disposal of all property and evidence delivered to the unit.Staffing of the unit includes a lieutenant, a sergeant, a corporal, three officers and three cadets.The evidence on hand includes 182,400 items, including 21,700 pieces of drug evidence, 4,500 guns and 2,750 money cases. All evidence is tracked through an electronic bar code system, a system that was instrumental in helping detectives link Ishmael to the thefts.A quality control team conducts random, unannounced sampling audits and evidence room supervisors conduct unannounced monthly audits throughout the year, police said.Police said based on the fact that these audits did not reveal any problems, as well as the fact that hundreds of cases are pulled each week for court use or disposal, police do not believe that Ishmael's stealing began in August, when he was assigned to the evidence room.About the Cadet ProgramPolice said cadets are civilian employees ages 18 to 21. They often, but not always, use the position as a path toward a career in policing. Johnson began his career as a cadet.The Baltimore County Police Department currently employs about 40 cadets, assigned to entry-level tasks throughout the agency. They are subject to the same background checks as sworn officers, as well initial and random drug testing and a polygraph and a psychological examination. Ishmael’s background check was "uneventful," Johnson said.Cadets have been employed in the evidence room for decades. Johnson said this is the first case involving a cadet stealing evidence from the BCoPD evidence room.Cadets assigned to the evidence room are responsible for retrieving evidence from what essentially is a large warehouse for officers and detectives when they need it; the cadets also return evidence to its proper place in the evidence room when detectives and officers return it.Nonetheless, Johnson said that all evidence room procedures, policies and equipment will be closely reviewed as a result of the Ishmael case.