Ex-cop guilty of taking bribes to escort drug shipments
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A former Montebello police officer has pleaded guilty to accepting at least $14,000 in bribes to escort illegal drug shipments and search a law enforcement database on behalf of a gang member. Authorities say Rudolph Petersen entered the plea Tuesday to a federal bribery charge and could face up to 10 years in prison. Prosecutors say Petersen solicited cash bribes from a gang member, including taking $10,000 to escort a truck that Petersen believed was hauling illegally grown marijuana. Authorities say he also searched a law enforcement database for information on someone the gang member believed was a snitch.