(KRON) — A federal jury convicted a former Antioch Police Division officer on Friday who used his Ok-9 excessively to chunk suspects and “kept a running a bite count that he celebrated with other officers,” prosecutors stated.
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Morteza Amiri, 33, was convicted of 1 depend of deprivation of rights beneath colour of regulation and one depend of falsification of data, the Northern District of California Division of Justice stated in a information launch.
In keeping with proof introduced at trial, on July 24, 2019, then-Officer Amiri was accompanied by one other Antioch police officer when pulled over a bicyclist, recognized as “A.A.,” for not having a lightweight. Amiri punched and took the sufferer to the bottom earlier than calling for the Ok-9 to be launched, biting and injuring the sufferer.
Following the incident, Amiri took photos of the sufferer’s wounds and texted them to different Antioch cops. “One officer responded, ‘Yeah buddy good boy,” referring to the K-9, and ‘Lol you bit [A.A.].'” When requested by one other officer about what minimize the canine’s face, Amiri responded, “that’s a piece of the suspect’s flesh lol.”
The DOJ stated Amiri later wrote to the officer who accompanied him on the July 24 incident, and stated, “you got to see [the K-9] in action lol,” and acknowledged that investigators obtained the sufferer “a forty five day violation and we’re gonna go away it at that so i don’t go to court docket for the chunk. Straightforward.” Amiri falsified a police report of the incident saying that he deployed his Ok-9 as a result of he was alone.
“Morteza Amiri violated the oath he swore to guard the individuals of Antioch,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Patrick D. Robbins. “He flouted his obligation as a police officer, misused his police canine, and inflicted pointless and extreme power towards the sufferer. This appalling conduct erodes public belief in regulation enforcement. And it weakens regulation enforcement’s capability to hold out its main mission of public security. As immediately’s jury verdict makes clear, officers who put themselves above the regulation will probably be held accountable.”
“Right now’s responsible verdict towards Morteza Amiri sends a transparent message: nobody is above the regulation, particularly these sworn to uphold it,” added FBI Particular Agent in Cost Sanjay Virmani.
The case towards Amiri was a part of a sweeping investigation into the Antioch and Pittsburgh police departments. A number of fees have been introduced towards 10 present and former officers and workers for varied crimes starting from the usage of extreme power to fraud.
Amiri was convicted by a jury final August for orchestrating a scheme to acquire pay raises from the Antioch Police Division. The USA Legal professional’s Workplace stated Amiri paid another person to secretly earn a college diploma on-line for him.
Amiri faces a most sentence of 10 years in jail on the depend of deprivation of rights beneath colour of regulation and 20 years in jail on the depend of falsification of data.
