Latino groups want talks with police commissioner

A delegation of Latino leaders is requesting a meeting with Police Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey over the targeting of bodegas by narcotics officers accused of taking money and destroying inventory while conducting raids for drug paraphernalia.

In a letter to Ramsey, the groups wrote that the situation "has reached a boiling point."

"This is not an isolated incident," said Pedro Rodriguez of United Neighbors Against Drugs. "It looks like a criminal enterprise within the Police Department to target immigrants."

Rodriguez said it was important for Ramsey "to hear firsthand from members of the community," especially to reassure the Latino and immigrant communities that they need not fear the police.

"This could be devastating for community-police relations" if the situation is left to fester and the allegations are not fully investigated, Rodriguez said.

A spokeswoman for Ramsey said that his office had received the faxed letter but that he had no immediate comment.

Rodriguez said later in the afternoon that Ramsey's office had contacted the groups and that a meeting would be set up as soon as possible.

A growing number of merchants have alleged that they were the subject of police raids in which officers disabled store security cameras and stole money and merchandise. The Inquirer on Sunday detailed a disturbing trend involving 21 raids in which the store owners were mostly immigrants with no criminal records.

The narcotics officers' alleged misconduct came to light after federal and local investigators began examining dozens of cases brought by Jeffrey Cujdik after his longtime informant accused the officer of falsifying evidence to obtain search warrants.

On Friday, the Defender Association of Philadelphia moved to throw out 24 convictions of drug defendants linked to Cujdik and his informant.

Regarding the bodega raids, as The Inquirer reported Sunday, there are at least 21 cases of merchants who were charged in the last two years on the basis of search warrants sworn out by Cujdik or his brother, Richard Cujdik, both members of the Narcotics Field Unit.

Several cases were dismissed or thrown out of court. Of those defendants who were convicted, most got less than a year of probation. None received a prison sentence. Only three of the 21 were charged with drug possession.

The letter to Ramsey was signed by Rodriguez, Antonio Knight of the Dominican Cultural Center, Danilo Burgos of the Dominican Grocers Association, Joe Garcia of the National Congress for Puerto Rican Rights, Antonio Valdes of Concilio, and Jose Joaquin Mota, a merchant.

Copies of the letter were addressed to District Attorney Lynne M. Abraham, Seventh District Council member Maria Quiñones-Sánchez, Deputy Mayor Everett Gillison, and Israel Colon of the Mayor's Office of Latino Affairs.

Quiñones-Sánchez said she saw the letter and spoke with Deputy Police Commissioner William Blackburn, who assured her that Ramsey would meet with the delegation who wrote the letter.

Quiñones-Sánchez said she had received even more phone calls from concerned constituents since the stories were published.

"We need to create a process and assure these folks that if they come forward . . . there won't be retaliation," she said. The president of the Dominican Grocers Association on Saturday took to the radio to urge grocers to come forward. Some had filed complaints with the department's Internal Affairs unit, which investigates complaints against officers.

Abraham spokeswoman Cathie Abookire said the district attorney had not received the letter yet and could not comment on it.

Cujdik remains on the job, but he has surrendered his badge and gun and has been assigned to desk duty.

Last week, the department reorganized several narcotics squads, but Pedro Rodriguez said more needed to be done.

"Reshuffling the deck is not sufficient," he said.

Rodriguez said the groups also want an assurance from Ramsey that police officers will not retaliate against merchants or look the other way if they need police help.

According to the letter, "The Dominican community, along with the City's other Latino residents, has over the years cooperated fully with the Philadelphia Police Department and the City of Philadelphia to make our neighborhoods safer and to reduce the incidence of crime.

"Dominicans, as newcomers, are not always fully empowered about their rights in this City.

"The fact that many reluctant business people have felt compelled to come forward with their complaints, risking their livelihoods and that of their families, indicates that the problem of police abuse has reached a boiling point."