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A Daily News Pulitzer Prize-winning series on a police investigation into questionable claims by a drug-case informant and their ramifications.
The story that started it all
Police snitch admits to lies
Snitch says narc lied to jail alleged drug dealers. Did he?
For seven years, Ventura Martinez has worked as one of the city's most productive police informants, bringing down more than 200 drug and gun dealers.

But Martinez now says that some of the police jobs were tainted, rooted in lies and motivated by power, greed and money.
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VIDEOS FROM THE 'TAINTED JUSTICE' SERIES
All stories from the series
Daily News investigation spurs hard look at drug arrests - 02/10/2009
Philadelphia's public defenders are scrutinizing scores of drug cases in response to a Daily News investigation into allegations that a veteran narcotics cop and his informant fabricated evidence for warrants.
Probe of suspect drug busts widens - 02/13/2009
A police investigation into allegations that a narcotics cop and his informant lied about drug buys so the officer could get search warrants has expanded to other officers and informants, a high-ranking police official said yesterday.
Ramsey, Nutter announce task force that will investigate narcotics officer's alleged corruption - 02/14/2009
Local and federal law enforcement have launched a task force to investigate allegations that a narcotics cop and his informant lied about drug buys so the cop could get search warrants and raid people's homes.
News story leads to release of jailed man - 02/20/2009
A North Philadelphia man who faced life in prison on drug charges was poised to walk free yesterday in the wake of a Daily News expose that raised questions about the cop and the informant linked to his arrest.
Cop added insult to injury, she says - 02/23/2009
Officer Jeffrey Cujdik was the first cop to burst through the front door, gun drawn. Lady Gonzalez froze. Terror gripped her five young children as Cujdik and eight other narcotics cops stormed the Kensington home.
Go ahead, be furious - but not at the messengers of 'Tainted Justice' - 02/25/2009
SO, YOU'RE livid. You read about the suspected drug dealer who was freed in the aftermath of this newspaper's "Tainted Justice" series, and you're outraged.
FOP takes swipe at Daily News' bad-cop stories - 02/26/2009
The Fraternal Order of Police and Officer Jeffrey Cujdik's lawyer joined forces yesterday to attack Daily News stories that raised questions about Cujdik's relationship with a paid police informant.
Did cop cross line again? - 03/05/2009
When Officer Jeffrey Cujdik learned that one of his informants, Tiffany Gorham, was arrested on robbery and aggravated-assault charges last year, he provided cash to bail her out of jail, Gorham's mother has told the Daily News.
Woman files 600G suit, says drug-raid cop groped her - 03/06/2009
During a 2007 police raid at Lady Gonzalez's Kensington home, a male officer directed Gonzalez into a small back room, where he sexually assaulted her under the guise of searching her for drugs and weapons, according to a civil lawsuit filed yesterday.
Drug raids gone bad - 03/20/2009
Store owners tell similar stories: Officer Jeffrey Cujdik and fellow officers destroyed or cut the wires to their surveillance cameras, confiscated cash, and even slurped energy drinks.
Police Raid Transcript - 03/29/2009
The Daily News has obtained surveillance video of a Sept. 11, 2007, police raid at a West Oak Lane grocery store.
Cops caught on camera - 03/30/2009
West Oak Lane store owner Jose Duran claims that narcotics officers entered his store on a warrant, then destroyed its surveillance system and stole $10k in cigarettes and cash. Video of that raid supplied to the Daily News has bolstered claims of eight other store owners who reported similar thefts.
Police narcotics units 'reshuffled' - 04/03/2009
Two Philadelphia police narcotics field unit squads - including one at the center of an ongoing federal and local probe - have been folded into other narcotics units.
Dominican merchants blast 'cancer' in Police Dept. - 04/07/2009
Dominican community leaders and merchants expressed outrage yesterday over what they characterized as a "criminal enterprise within the Police Department" and called on Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey to assure them he'll root out corrupt officers.
Narcs' cases in the bag - 04/09/2009
A Daily News analysis shows that an elite narcotics squad raided 22 bodegas, boutiques, and tobacco shops for drug paraphernalia between July and December 2007. But why when they're supposed to be going after big fish?
 
Some say store raids miss point - 04/09/2009
The Daily News' "Tainted Justice" series has prompted community leaders to question the wisdom of using an elite drug-enforcement unit to bust small stores for selling drug paraphernalia.
2 more narcotics officers off street in light of misconduct probe - 04/15/2009
Two more narcotics officers have been placed on desk duty as FBI and local investigators delve deeper into allegations of police misconduct.
Narc bosses ignored procedures - 04/24/2009
Red flags were everywhere. Something wasn't right. Search-warrant applications read like form letters. A confidential informant made drug buys across the city, sometimes just minutes apart, defying the laws of physics.
Documents: Charges often OK'd by paralegals - 04/24/2009
THE PHILADELPHIA Police Department isn't the only city agency that must answer for the alleged misbehavior of police narcotics officers.
 
The proper way to search - 04/24/2009
Investigators from the FBI and the Philadelphia Police Department's Internal Affairs Bureau are investigating whether search warrants were properly obtained and executed by some officers in the Narcotics Field Unit.
Charges dropped against drug suspect arrested by probed cop - 05/16/2009
City prosecutors yesterday dropped charges against a suspected drug dealer after a judge denied their request to continue the case pending the outcome of an investigation into the arresting officer, Jeffrey Cujdik.
Cop accused of fondling women - 06/01/2009
A fourth Philadelphia police officer has been taken off the street in connection with an expanding investigation into allegations of police misconduct. This time, three women say they were fondled and groped.
Bodega raids will be fully probed, Ramsey assures Dominican community - 06/17/2009
Prompted by reports that a group of narcotics officers took thousands in cash and merchandise from mom-and-pop stores during raids, Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey last night assured Dominican community leaders and merchants that he will stand tough against misconduct.
Again, a woman alleges assault by cop - 06/17/2009
The burly narcotics officer groped the woman in a doorway to her apartment, she says. The woman, whose name is being withheld, ended up at a hospital from what happened next.
 
Timeline for 3 assaults & an officer twice placed on desk duty - 06/17/2009
Narcotics Officer Thomas Tolstoy is on desk duty and is a focus of a growing probe into allegations of police misconduct. The complaints filed and police administrative action against Tolstoy include:
4 officers under probe still getting OT - 08/03/2009
The city is still paying thousands of dollars in court-related overtime to four narcotics officers taken off the street after being accused of fabricating evidence and other crimes, payroll records show.
2 lawsuits: Cops hid 'illegal' actions - 09/11/2009
Narcotics Officer Jeffrey Cujdik and fellow squad members routinely conducted "illegal searches" of corner stores, then disabled surveillance cameras to "cover up" their actions and the theft of money and merchandise, according to allegations in two civil lawsuits filed yesterday.
Tougher regs for cops & informants - 09/25/2009
No sexual relationships. No gifts. These are just a few of the rules in a new police directive that places tighter controls on officers and their confidential informants.
2 more narcs taken off the street in corruption probe - 11/20/2009
The Internal Affairs Bureau has stripped two more narcotics officers of their police powers and service weapons in connection with an expanding federal-local investigation into allegations of perjury and misconduct, including fabrication of evidence.
Eye-opening revelations lead to systemic changes - 12/29/2009
IT STARTED simple: A longtime drug informant accused a narcotics officer of fabricating evidence to frame suspected drug dealers. But in the 11 months since the Daily News first detailed the allegations lodged by informant Ventura Martinez against Officer Jeffrey Cujdik, the fallout is far from simple, with no conclusion in sight.
Among key staff appointments announced yesterday by D.A. Seth Williams is that of Christopher Werner (second from left) as chief of county detectives.
D.A.'s pick for top detective oversaw 'Tainted' unit
A FORMER police captain who supervised narcotics officers now at the center of an FBI-led corruption investigation has landed a top job at the District Attorney's Office.
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