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Local Police Accused of Planting Drugs on Man
Posted: Sep 9, 2011 9:17 PM by Steven Romo - sromo@kristv.com
Updated: Sep 12, 2011 9:32 PM
ARANSAS PASS, Texas - There are new allegations about the Aransas Pass Police Department. Several witnesses are coming forward saying they saw officers tase and beat a suspect only to find out they had the wrong guy.
Witnesses also claim to have seen police officers plant drugs on the man.
"I've been there all my life and I've never seen the police department in as bad of shape as it is now," Velma Freeman said.
Freeman owns Freeman's A/C Supply in Aransas Pass. She says officers came to her business looking for a suspect named "Keith" back in June.
Instead, she says they found her 21-year-old employee Kasey Staley who they then allegedly beat, tased and arrested, before learning he wasn't "Keith".
But the story doesn't end there. Freeman and five other witnesses signed sworn affidavits saying police officers planted drugs on Staley after they cuffed him.
"When the detective planted the dope in Kasey's pocket Mr. Hernandez came around and stood in front of the detective like he was trying to block me from seeing," Freeman said.
"They had already searched him and they announced to everyone in the room that he was clean; that he was clear," Kayla Staley said.
Kayla is Kasey's ex-wife. She says she also saw the officers plant the drugs on him.
The witnesses tell us they've taken the six sworn statements about the incident to city hall to speak with city leaders, but they haven't been contacted.
We tried calling Police Chief Darrell Jones for comment. I was also directed to Assistant Chief Bill Haines, but never heard back.
Attorneys for Staley say they don't believe there are any standing charges against him.
"We hope to be in a position to take legal action and do some legal maneuvering within this coming week in order to help Kasey achieve his freedom, which he should have never been arrested in the first place," said attorney Steve Carrigan.
For those who have come forward claiming to have witnessed the police corruption, they say their view of the force has likely been changed forever.
"If anything ever happens, I will not call the police. I will just handle it myself," said Kayla Staley.
One thing all of the witnesses seem to share is their sense of disappointment. They say they're disappointed in the actions of the officers here at Freeman's A/C Supply back in June, but they also say they're disappointed in city leaders for not stepping up and asking for answers on what happened.
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