PHOENIX -- A former Phoenix police officer accused of
stealing drugs and arrested in Pittsburgh is back in Arizona this morning.
William McCartney, 37, was extradited from Pennsylvania and
arrived in Phoenix overnight. Refusing to make eye contact with 3TV's reporter,
much of his face hidden by a baseball cap, McCartney had nothing to say as he
was escorted to jail.
McCartney was arrested on June 22, just three days after he
was indicted on 40 felony counts, including tampering with evidence, theft, and
possession of narcotics.
The charges stem from a January 2011 audit conducted by the
Phoenix Police Department's Profession Standards Bureau. It was a quarterly
audit of drugs items in their property room that were slated for destruction.
During the routine review, auditors discovered that
over-the-counter medications had been substituted for narcotic drugs, including
oxycodone.
Investigators were able to establish a pattern of
discrepancies that pointed to McCartney.
He was first arrested on March 11, 2011 for allegedly
stealing the oxycodone pills and replacing them with OTC meds like Aleve.
"At this point we believe that over 2,400 pills have either
been removed or swapped out,” Phoenix Police Sgt. Trent Crump said at the time.
Authorities believe the scam might have been going on for
years until that randomly scheduled audit revealed the irregularities.
Oxycodone is a common painkiller that is listed as a
Schedule II controlled substance because of its "high potential for
abuse."
On the street, oxycodone, also known as "oxy,"
"blue," "kicker" and "hillbilly heroine,"
reportedly sells for anywhere from $5 to $40 per pill depending on the dosage,
which generally ranges from 10mg to 80mg.
McCartney, who had been with the Phoenix Police Department
since 1999, resigned shortly after his March 2011 arrest. He was later released
pending an investigation.
McCartney faces a variety of charges, including theft,
fraudulent schemes, computer tampering, narcotic drug violations and tampering
with evidence