3 Airport Officers Put on Leave in Criminal Inquiry

At least three officers of the Los Angeles International Airport’s independent police force have been removed from active duty pending completion of an investigation into purported crimes within their department, airport officials confirmed on Tuesday.

Clifton Moore, the airport’s general manager, said that to his knowledge, three of the airport security bureau’s 206 officers “have been told to stay home and draw their pay because we’re investigating matters which relate to those people.”

Moore said that the temporary removals from active duty should not be considered suspensions, “because suspension means you’re off the payroll, and these people are still being paid.”

He declined to identify the three or discuss the activities under investigation, saying that such information is privileged because it involves personnel matters.

Last week, the Los Angeles Police Department, which was called into the case nine months ago at the request of the Airport Commission, said that its investigation revealed evidence of grand theft, embezzlement, extortion, conspiracy to commit bribery and other criminal acts by airport officers.

Neither the Police Department nor the district attorney’s office, which has begun reviewing the evidence for possible prosecutions, would reveal the identity of those under suspicion or the circumstances under which the alleged crimes are believed to have occurred.

However, search warrants executed at the security bureau’s headquarters when the investigation began indicated that investigators were looking into payroll records, overtime reports, work schedules and evidence of missing property.

The Police Department said that besides evidence of theft, embezzlement, extortion and conspiracy to bribe, there is information indicating misappropriation of public funds, falsification of public records, unauthorized release of computer information and unauthorized release of police information.

In addition, Moore confirmed on Tuesday that the city Department of Airports is looking into allegations of racial discrimination within the security bureau. Moore said that he could not provide details about those matters because they are also considered privileged. About half of the airport’s officers are black.

Moore said that the charges of discrimination were contained in the same anonymous letters that made “rather severe allegations” of criminal conduct by airport officers.

“The letters said that there was unequal meting out of discipline; that the opportunities for promotion were not as great for a black officer as for a white officer,” said Johnnie Cochran Jr., president of the Airport Commission

“There were allegations that somebody scrawled something on a wall,” Cochran said, “something that accused one of the white officers of being a ‘nigger lover.’ ”

Cochran expressed confidence that the Department of Airports will conduct a thorough probe of the discrimination allegations and resolve any problems that are found. He pointed out that both the internal investigation and the investigation by the Police Department were instigated at Moore’s request.