‘Bling Ring’ film’s pay records raise questions about LAPD officer
Payroll records appear to contradict how much money a Los Angeles police officer who brought down the “bling ring,” a group of San Fernando Valley youths who burglarized the homes of Hollywood celebrities, said he was paid to work as technical advisor on a movie about the case.
Officer Brett Goodkin, who is under investigation by the LAPD for consulting on Sofia Coppola’s docudrama while assigned to the case, was paid between $5,000 and $6,000 for advising on the production, authorities said. But payroll records turned over to defendants in the burglary case show Goodkin was paid $12,500 by the filmmaker and her production company.
In addition to his consulting work, Goodkin made a cameo as an arresting officer in the film. The payroll records do not specify what Goodkin received payments for.
Information in the documents also raises questions about whether Goodkin properly informed police supervisors about his movie job. He told the district attorney’s office that he had made his captain aware of his involvement with the film in January, the district attorney’s office said. But the documents indicate Goodkin had been receiving money from the production since 2011.
-- Amy Kaufman, Los Angeles Times