KMPH Fox 26 Central San Joaquin Valley News Source in Fresno, California Entertainment, News, Sports and Weather | Whistle Blower Points to Fresno Chief

Whistle Blower Points to Fresno Chief

By: Clint Olivier

Fresno,Ca.-A former Fresno Police Officer with ties to the embattled narcotics unit is speaking out to help clean up the city he loves.

However, he wants to stay anonymos so he's referred to as "Bob," he spoke to KMPH wearing a disguise, and his voice was also distorted in an effort to protect his identity.

He's reacting to the recent arrests of three Fresno Police Officers for auto theft and other charges. He makes severe accusations against the department's policies in general, and Chief Jerry Dyer in particular.

"The temptation for corruption is really, really, incredibly high in narcotics," he said.

Bob says he's not pointing the finger at any particular officers, but the recent arrests come as no surprise.

He says the line between officers and informants is blurred, with poor direction coming from FPD upper management.

"Informants are just tools. You have detectives doing favors for informants, looking the other way when informants run afoul of the law," he said.

Bob says the practices he describes are nothing new; he witnessed similar things happen when he was on the streets.

"This is a systemic problem with that unit. There's just been a lack of supervision on how informants are managed, and the problems start at the top of the organization with the chief," he said.

Bob says instructions on the right way to deal with informants are contained in the department's informant management policy, and the guidelines aren't being followed.

"The detectives are being told that they're going to be evaluated on their productivity, and it's about the ends justifying the means," he said.

In a meeting with reporters, Chief Dyer said he was brokenhearted over the latest developments in his department and he apologized to the citizens of Fresno.

But Bob says he blames the same chief for fostering an environment focused on asset forfeiture, where he says the suspected officers allegedly thrived.

"It's been conveyed down to the detectives in that unit that he wants production, that he wants seizures to fund other units, specifically the helicopter unit of the police department," he said.

Bob says he's not a disgruntled former employee, and he has no ax to grind against Chief Dyer or anyone in the department, he just wants to do the right thing.

When asked why is he speaking out now, he said, "because I'm a lifelong resident of this city and I've invested a lot of my life in the Fresno Police Department and I know what's going on," he said.

We communicated with Chief Dyer through the Fresno Police Department's Public Information Officer.

The Chief nor the department has a comment on the issues raised by "Bob," officials say Chief Dyer made his feelings known in the meeting with reporters earlier in the day.