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Home , Racketeering

STATE OF MICHIGAN

BILL SCHUETTE ATTORNEY GENERAL

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT: John Sellek JANUARY 30, 2015 517-373-8060 www.michigan.gov/AGPress

Schuette Secures , and Conviction of Former DPD Officer Former Detroit Police Officer Sentenced to Serve Up to 20 Years Behind Bars for Bribery, Illegal Identity Scheme

LANSING – Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette today announced that former Detroit Police Officer Tamboura Kenyatta Jackson, 41, of Clinton Township, was sentenced to serve up to 20 years in prison before Wayne County Circuit Judge Mark T. Slavens after being convicted of felony racketeering, forgery, and bribery charges by a Wayne County jury on December 23, 2014. The case originated from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI)-led Detroit Area Public Corruption Task Force in collaboration with Schuette’s Public Integrity Unit. “Public officers who abuse the public’s trust for personal gain greatly undermine the integrity of law enforcement,” said Schuette. “Confidence in public safety is vital in Michigan’s turnaround. I’d like to thank Chief Craig for his efforts to bring accountability to the force and the FBI for their assistance and hard work on this case.” “This department does not and will not tolerate such egregious acts by our members," said Chief James Craig. “We will cooperate with all law enforcement agencies to vigorously investigate any and all of this nature. I would like to emphasize that the actions of this employee are not conducive to the vast majority of officers who serve the citizens of this city with the utmost level of integrity and dedication.” “Law enforcement officers who sell their services for criminal and fraudulent purposes breach their duty to protect and serve the public,” stated Paul M. Abbate, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Detroit Field Office. “FBI Detroit, in concert with our partners on the Detroit Area Public Corruption Task Force and in the Michigan Attorney General's Public Integrity Unit, will continue to pursue those

-MORE- Schuette Secures Racketeering, Bribery and Forgery Conviction of Former DPD Officer January 30, 2015 Page 2 who breach the public trust for their own personal gain, and hold them accountable under the law for their actions.” Co-defendant Lisa Curtis, 35 of Macomb, previously pleaded guilty to bribing Jackson and testified against him. Background on Tamboura Jackson Case Beginning in 2009, Jackson took cash bribes in exchange for fraudulent police reports in an elaborate scheme concocted with co-defendant Lisa Curtis. Curtis told dozens of southeast Michigan clients she could improve their credit score through her Waterford-based company, Bright Star Consulting, LLC. In exchange for her credit improvement services, Curtis solicited a fee ranging from $200 to $1,000. After Curtis collected the fees from consumers, Curtis and Jackson conducted a scheme to file false police reports claiming related to certain credit card transactions. Curtis provided Jackson her clients' information, including a fake identity theft story. Jackson then created and submitted false police reports, which were filed without the clients' knowledge or consent. Curtis would then pay Jackson bribes in the range of $50 to $200 for creating the false police reports. Under federal law credit reporting agencies must remove negative credit instances when they get a police report stating identity theft. Jackson also used the scam to improve his own credit by creating a false police report signed by another officer, without the officer's knowledge or consent. Jackson accessed the Detroit Police Department's reporting system using the other officer's log-in information to file a false police report on his own behalf and had Curtis submit the claim to the credit reporting agency. After Schuette filed charges against Jackson, the Detroit Police Department suspended him without pay and Jackson later resigned from the Detroit Police Department. On October 22, 2014, Curtis pleaded guilty to Bribery of a Public Officer and was sentenced to two years of probation by Judge Mark Slavens in the Wayne County Circuit Court. On January 30, 2015, Jackson was sentenced by Judge Slavens to immediately serve:  Racketeering (CCE) – two and a half to 20 years in prison; and,  Public Officer Accepting Bribes – eleven months to ten years in prison (concurrent with Racketeering); and,  Forgery – eleven months to fourteen years in prison (concurrent with Racketeering).

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Schuette Secures Racketeering, Bribery, and Forgery Conviction of Former DPD Officer January 30, 2015 Page 3 of 3

A.G. Schuette’s Public Integrity Unit: Cleaning Up Public Corruption Upon taking office in 2011, Attorney General Schuette launched a new Public Integrity Unit (PIU) in the Attorney General's office to accelerate the combat of corruption in state and local government, protect tax dollars, and restore the public's trust in government. The unit is a member of the multi-agency Detroit-area Public Corruption Task Force. Since its inception, Schuette's PIU has filed 303 charges against 61 individuals holding positions of public trust, including state and local government officials. To date, 45 defendants have been sentenced following their convictions on a total of 126 charges.

[Attachment: Jackson photo]

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