Inmate Norman Wielsch

Disgraced former Contra Costa drug cop apologizes for 'tarnishing the badge'

By Katie Nelson

Contra Costa Times

Posted:   05/09/2013 06:22:47 PM PDT

Updated:   05/09/2013 06:22:48 PM PDT

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Former Contra Costa Narcotics Enforcement Team Commander, Norman Wielsch,... ( JIM STEVENS

MARTINEZ -- Disgraced former police officer Norman Wielsch apologized to a federal court Wednesday, saying just days before he'll be sentenced for conspiring to sell seized drugs that he had "tarnish(ed) the badge."

Wielsch, the former head of the Central Contra Costa Narcotics Enforcement Team (CNET), pleaded guilty in December to charges that he had sold drugs that had been seized by CNET agents, robbed prostitutes and made phony arrests.
Wielsch, who is scheduled to be sentenced by a federal judge May 20, said in his apology note that he resisted help from doctors and family for treatment of depression and post-traumatic stress. He said he was hesitant because of a belief among some law enforcement officers that admitting weakness means an officer cannot adequately perform his duties.
"I was a big macho cop," he said in the note. "I didn't need help."
But Wielsch admitted he was wrong, and that his destructive behavior has hurt many. He said while he gave 24 years of honest work, he realized he had made gross errors in judgment.
"I have seen things and been through things that would make a normal person go crazy after one incident," he said. "Please have mercy on me."
Federal sentencing guidelines call for between 14 and 17.5 years in federal prison. Wielsch's attorney, Michael Cardoza, has previously said that he's forbidden from arguing for fewer than 10 years.
Former Concord private investigator Christopher

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Butler, who was also implicated in the criminal scheme, pleaded guilty last year to seven felony counts covering methamphetamine and marijuana distribution, theft, conspiracy, extortion, robbery and illegal wiretapping. He was sentenced to eight years in federal prison.Former CNET agent and San Ramon police officer Louis Lombardi, 40, of Discovery Bay, pleaded guilty to stealing drugs in the case and was sentenced to three years in prison. Former Danville officer Stephen Tanabe, 48, of Alamo, is awaiting trial on charges that he conspired with Butler to set up the estranged husbands of Butler's private investigation firm clients for DUI arrests.

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CNET: Danville Officer Stephen Tanabe

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CNET: Commander Norman Wielsch

Ex-narcotics squad commander pleads guilty to stealing and selling drug evidence, robbing prostitutes

By Malaika Fraley

Contra Costa Times

© Copyright 2012, Bay Area News Group

Posted:   12/05/2012 01:05:54 PM PST

Updated:   12/05/2012 04:39:52 PM PST

http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_22130934/ex-narcotics-cop-pleads-guilty-stealing-drug-evidence

OAKLAND -- The ousted head of an elite Contra Costa County vice squad pleaded guilty to five felonies in federal court Wednesday, nearly two years after his state Department of Justice colleagues caught him selling stolen drug evidence.

Former Central Contra Costa Narcotics Enforcement (CNET) Cmdr. Norman Wielsch, 51, of Antioch, kissed his father before he stood in front of the judge and admitted to selling drugs that had been seized by CNET agents, robbing prostitutes and making phony arrests.

He was taken into custody after, in a barely audible tone, he said he was "guilty" of crimes dating back to 2009. His plea was part of a deal he made with federal prosecutors.

Wielsch, a law enforcement officer for 25 years, apologized for the shame he brought to the badge, and particularly the members of CNET, a Department of Justice operation that was shut down after Wielsch's arrest.

"We (at CNET) did a lot a lot of good things before I did all these stupid things," Wielsch said.

"Most of all, I want to say sorry to my dad, who I let down and brought disgrace to my family name," he said, breaking down in tears. "I'm very sorry."

A judge will decide how much prison time Wielsch receives at his sentencing hearing scheduled for Feb. 19.

The federal sentencing guidelines call for between 14 and 17.5 years in federal prison. Wielsch's attorney, Michael Cardoza, says he's forbidden from arguing for fewer than 10.

Wielsch

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pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute marijuana and methamphetamine, theft from programs receiving government funds, robbery, and two counts of conspiracy against civil rights. Another six felony charges were dismissed as part of the plea deal.

Describing to the judge how he and former Concord private investigator Christopher Butler would make dates with prostitutes they found on the Internet and then rob them, Wielsch stopped himself and said, "I'm sorry, I really can't believe we did this."

Butler and Wielsch, friends since they were on the Antioch police force together in the 1990s, were arrested in a state Department of Justice sting in February 2011, prompting a countywide police-corruption probe that expanded to include allegations that the pair ran a Pleasant Hill brothel and led to more arrests.

Former CNET agent and San Ramon police officer Louis Lombardi, 40, of Discovery Bay, pleaded guilty to stealing drugs in the case and was sentenced in January to three years. Former Danville officer Stephen Tanabe, 48, of Alamo, is awaiting trial on charges that he conspired with Butler to set up the estranged husbands of Butler's P.I. firm clients for DUI arrests.

San Ramon attorney Mary Nolan, of Oakland, is among the defendants being sued in civil court for the so-called Dirty DUI scheme. She is also awaiting trial on charges that she and Butler used eavesdropping equipment on her clients' estranged spouses.

Butler, 51, of Concord, also took a plea deal and was sentenced in September to eight years in federal prison. His attorney said Butler was motivated by a need for cash when his business suffered at the expense of his failed attempt to launch his own reality TV show.

Cardoza said Wednesday that it's unclear why Wielsch "went bad" after serving "the public honorably for a number of years."

"I don't think even Norm knows the answer to that," Cardoza said.

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