Pubdate: Thu, 08 Jun 2006
Source: Daily Southtown (IL)
Copyright: 2006 Daily Southtown
Contact:  http://www.dailysouthtown.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/810
Author: Chris Hack

OFFICER PLEADS GUILTY

The second of five Chicago police officers accused of robbing South 
Side drug dealers pleaded guilty to federal charges Wednesday and 
agreed to testify against his old crew.

Corey Flagg, 34, was part of the group of tactical officers who 
worked together in the department's Englewood District. They're 
accused of taking cash, drugs and guns from dealers they accosted in 
2004 and 2005.

Flagg, the son of a retired Chicago officer, joined the department in 
1996. According to his plea agreement with prosecutors, Flagg was 
recruited by fellow officer Broderick Jones -- who by 2004 had been 
stripped of his police powers and assigned to desk, but still cruised 
the streets in his Cadillac Escalade and surveilled drug dealers.

Jones would allegedly direct Flagg to pull over vehicles of known 
drug dealers and shake them down. In one so-called rip-off, Flagg 
seized between $17,000 and $19,000 from a drug dealer at a car wash 
near 85th Street and Ashland Avenue.

During most of the robberies, Flagg wore his badge, gun and 
bulletproof vest, according to prosecutors.

In addition to Flagg and Jones, officers Darek Haynes, Eural Black 
and Erik Johnson were also charged. Johnson pleaded guilty last year. 
Several drug dealers also are charged in the case, accused of tipping 
off the crooked cops to rival dealers to reduce their competition.

Under federal sentencing guidelines, Flagg faces a minimum of 21 
years in prison. But he hopes to cut that in half by helping prosecutors.
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