Officer lied, coerced witness in murder trial that put two in prison, CA officials say
An Oakland Police Department homicide investigator whose testimony helped put two men accused of murder in prison lied under oath, California officials reported.
Officer Phong Tran also tried to tamper with witnesses in the 2016 trial, the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office said in a news release.
Tran pleaded not guilty to the charges Wednesday, April 26, in Alameda County Superior Court, KTVU reported. His attorney earlier told the station the charges are baseless.
“The DA treats murderers like heroes, looking for every possible excuse to keep them out of jail,” Andrew Ganz told the station. “Yet, real heroes such as Oakland Homicide Detective Tran – who has dedicated and risked his life to try to keep the city safe – are treated like criminals.”.
The convictions of the two men in the 2011 death of Charles Butler were vacated, and the men were released from prison in 2022, the office said.
Tran testified under oath that he did not previously know a key witness in the case. But he had known her for six months before the slaying and paid her money as an informant, prosecutors said.
“It turned out that this key witness was not a witness at all,” prosecutors said. Officials said Tran asked her to falsely testify against the two men.
Tran also tried to bribe a second witness by offering to help with her son’s legal problems, but she refused to lie under oath, the release said.
Tran faces charges of perjury under oath, suborning perjury under oath, bribing a witness and attempting to bribe a witness, prosecutors said.
“Lying and manipulating a witness are serious violations of the public trust,” Price said in a video about the case.
The District Attorney’s Office is now reviewing at least 125 other cases that Tran investigated.
Body-cam reveals officer lied about traffic stop in DUI case, California officials say
Woman sends fake cop running when she flags down real Florida sheriff’s deputy, cops say
Sheriff’s ‘Wheel of Fugitive’ show cost wrongly accused man his job, Florida lawsuit says
