BRPD officer allegedly held handcuffed woman captive; another accused of feeding info to criminals
BATON ROUGE - A pair of police officers were arrested Thursday, just hours before a news conference where BRPD discussed multiple investigations into corruption at the department.
Click here to watch the full BRPD news conference.
WBRZ first reported on allegations that an officer was trading sensitive information to a drug dealer. The officer at the center of those allegations, Richmond Barrow, was arrested Thursday alongside Wade Hill, another officer at BRPD.
Hill was working extra duty July 8 when he allegedly handcuffed a woman who was caught trespassing at an apartment complex. Hill reportedly loaded that woman into his police unit and then drove her to his personal vehicle before taking the handcuffed victim on another ride to several locations, ultimately stopping at an apartment on Highland Road.
Once there, Hill allegedly removed the woman's handcuffs, took her to a vacant unit he owned, and then masturbated in front of her before letting her go. The woman added that she was groped and harassed by Hill throughout the car ride.
Investigators were able to use surveillance video, body camera footage, and GPS data to corroborate the accusations, police said at the briefing Thursday evening.
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Barrow is accused of sharing loads of sensitive information with friends, family, and people involved in criminal activity, including offering to give up the identity of an informant to a suspected drug dealer.
Barrow was scheduled to have an administrative hearing Wednesday prior to his resignation.
Jail records showed Hill was booked on charges of kidnapping, sexual battery, obscenity, and malfeasance. Barrow was booked for malfeasance and obstruction of justice. Video taken Thursday showed both men escorted to a jail transport in handcuffs. The arrests come a day after WBRZ learned that Barrow had resigned from the department.
The department also shared details of another officer's arrest back in April after he was caught in a shoplifting investigation at a Denham Springs Walmart. Then-officer Billy Mattingly was allegedly caught putting lower-priced stickers on high-dollar items and then taking them to a self-checkout register. A disciplinary hearing was held last week, and the 11-year BRPD veteran was fired.