BEDFORD — A Bedford Police Department sergeant has been arrested on official misconduct-related charges, according to state police.
Sgt. Jeremy Crane, 38, of Bedford, was arrested Wednesday by Indiana State Police's Organized Crime and Corruption Unit and charged with official misconduct false reporting and official misconduct obstruction of justice, ISP Sgt. Michael Wood said in a press release. The charges were filed by a special prosecutor.
Bedford Police Department Chief Terry Moore became "suspicious about the collection of evidence during an investigation by Crane" in October 2020 and contacted state police, Wood said.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Crane was contacted, while he was on-duty, by a woman who asked him to come to her house, unlock her boyfriend’s vehicle and search for drugs.
Although it was against the department’s policy to unlock vehicles, Crane agreed to do so and found approximately an ounce of methamphetamine inside the vehicle, according to the affidavit.
“No search warrant was obtained to do this, and there is dispute on who owned the van,” the affidavit read.
The woman and Crane then agreed he would take the methamphetamine and she would later call police anonymously, lie and say the drugs were found behind a local business, according to the affidavit.
Later the same day, Crane said he would respond to the anonymous call about the methamphetamine being found, “knowing the call is not anonymous and that he already has the methamphetamine,” the affidavit read.
In his report of the incident, he indicated the caller was anonymous and the methamphetamine was found in the parking lot, “although he had already collected the substance from the van,” the affidavit read.
“There are many reasons why a police department cannot allow its officers to generate written reports that deliberately contain false information, especially when criminal drug activity is involved,” the affidavit read. “Other police officers rely on these written reports, and can cite these allegations in other cases where people can be arrested. Accordingly, justice is obstructed when a deliberately false report is submitted and retained within the BPD system.”
In a press release, Moore said Crane was placed on paid administrative leave after he requested state police open an investigation.
"Proper procedures will be followed as we move forward with this incident," Moore said in the release.
