19-year Detroit police veteran accused of taking $15K from a drug dealer

DETROIT (FOX 2) - A 19-year veteran with the Detroit Police Department indicted Thursday in federal court.

The accused is Officer Michael Mosley a current member of the drug operation unit, is facing charges on allegations that he accepted a $15,000 bribe from a drug dealer.

"I had suspended him with pay, approximately a month ago based on these allegations," said Detroit Police Chief James Craig. 

According to federal documents - Mosley and other officers discovered drugs and firearms at a drug trafficker's house earlier this year. 

The drug dealer confessed to owning the drugs and signed a confession. But when that dealer offered Mosley a cash bribe in exchange for not pursuing criminal charges, Mosley accepted the $15,000 and picked up the cash money left by the drug dealer in the backyards of two abandoned houses.

"It appears that this alleged criminal misconduct is isolated only to Officer Mosley," Craig said. 

Chief James Craig says this investigation is just one of several that are part of a larger probe into allegations of corruption into DPD's drug operation unit. 

"This morning at 7 a.m., we initiated and led a large scale probe as part of ongoing internal investigation focusing on Major Violators Section formerly known as Narcotics," Craig said.

Craig says Thursday's probe focused on recovery of documents, case files and forensic imaging of 50 computers assigned to the unit. Material was seized from three locations including Public Safety Headquarters 

For Mosley - each of the two bribery charges carries a maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine of $250,000. Law enforcement officials say the investigation should not give the Detroit Police Department "a black eye."