NYPD Undercover cop accused of bogus arrests

NEW YORK - A New York City narcotics detective claimed he bought drugs from people he then arrested.

Prosecutors say it was all a lie.

The detective out of Queens is facing dozens of counts of falsifying records and making bogus arrests, which according to the indictment led to innocent people being accused of selling drugs.

HOFFER: I just wanted to ask you about the charges. Are you telling me you have no comment?
DETECTIVE OSBACK: I have no comment about the charges.

NYPD Narcotics Detective Adolph Osback knows he could be facing years behind bars if found guilty of charges detailed in the 48-count indictment obtained exclusively by Eyewitness News. It alleges that the undercover detective repeatedly filed false reports about having bought drugs from people whom he then had arrested.

HOFFER: You have a long list of charges against you, you have nothing to say about it detective?
DETECTIVE OSBACK: I have nothing to say about it sir.

Among the charges: falsifying records, perjury and unlawful imprisonment in which it's alleged he had five people falsely arrested on drug charges. Some of the arrests occurred in the 110th precinct in Elmhurst, Queens. It's the same precinct where back in 2008, two brothers, Maximo and Jose Colon, were falsely accused of selling cocaine by two undercover narcotics detectives. The brothers got a $300-thousand dollar settlement from the city. A federal judge in that case slammed the NYPD for what he called ''widespread falsification by arresting police officers."

"I think it happens a lot more then we think," attorney Rochelle Berliner said.

Berliner was the attorney for the falsely-accused Colon Brothers. She says this latest indictment of an officer seems to back the judge's claims of a widespread problem which she believes is caused by intense pressure to make arrests.

ROCHELLE: "He's getting overtime and he's getting numbers. Sometimes the undercovers are expected to perform whether there are quotas or just expectations in order to remain as an undercover officer."
HOFFER: So they have a certain number of arrests to make?
ROCHELLE: It might not be specifically a number, but they have to maintain some sort of stats so that they can remain as undercovers."

The NYPD denies the existence of quotas or punishment for failure to make numbers, but with each arrest of an officer comes more questions about what's corrupting cops?

HOFFER: What about these false arrests? What do you say about it?
OSBACK: You just said it yourself
HOFFER: Are the allegations true?
OSBACK: Absolutely not!

We've also learned that 3-days ago, Detective Osback was indicted by the Brooklyn D-A on similar charges of falsifying arrest records.

Despite two separate indictments, an NYPD spokesperson says this is an isolated case and not likely to involve other officers.