A former officer with the Durham Police Department was indicted Wednesday on federal charges of distributing fewer than five grams of crack cocaine and possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime.
An October 2009 complaint lodged to Durham Police Chief Jose Lopez resulted in immediate criminal and internal investigations into 35-year-old Sherrod Peace’s activities. Peace, who is not currently in custody, was investigated by DPD officials as well as members of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration Task Force.
“We take any allegation of misconduct by our employees very seriously and thoroughly investigate all complaints. Law enforcement officers take an oath to serve and protect the community and we must be held to a high standard,” Lopez said in a news statement released Thursday by DPD.
Peace, who had been a member of DPD’s Uniform Patrol Bureau since 2003, resigned from the force on Dec. 31, 2009, according to the (Raleigh) News & Observer.
Peace played football at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a defensive lineman from 1998 to 1999, WRAL reported.
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