In a way, corrupt cop Tye Downard, along with his wife and children, are also victims of the war on drugs.

Downard was a 20-year decorated Reynoldsburg police detective who was arrested in February by federal investigators for stealing heroin, cocaine, opiates and marijuana from local drug dealers and selling those drugs back to other dealers and users. Soon after his arrest, Downard committed suicide in a single-person Delaware County jail cell.

Also busted was Downard’s long-time partner, Reynoldsburg police Lt. Shane Mauger, who admitted to falsifying search warrants against dealers and then stealing their cash and drugs.

Mauger told federal prosecutors that he and Downard started framing and robbing area dealers beginning in 2006. Federal prosecutors charged in US District Court that Downard and Mauger had stole between $150,000 and $250,000 in seized money and property.

Mind-boggling are the accolades both Downard and Mauger earned during these ten years. Downard was named Reynoldsburg officer of the year in 2007 and 2013. Mauger was named Reynoldsburg officer of the year for 2008 and recognized for outstanding leadership in 2015 for his work combating narcotics.

“Mauger shared in the responsibility of seizing the largest quantities of drug money off the streets in the history of the police department,” said current Reynoldsburg Police Chief Jim O’Neill during the 2015 ceremony.

Mauger now faces 20 years in prison. He told federal prosecutors he had a gambling problem.

The arrests of Downard and Mauger stunned the Reynoldsburg community. Many took pause, questioning whether they could trust their own police officers. Some wondered whether other officers close to Downard and Mauger were also tarnishing the badge. Both Downard and Mauger were members of the Franklin County Drug Task Force, which includes the police departments of Reynoldsburg, Upper Arlington, Worthington and also the Franklin County Prosecutor’s Office and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office.

Certainly the efforts and bravery of the task force, especially during the grips of a heroin epidemic, should be commended. But in the aftermath of Mauger and Downard’s arrest, some found it hard to believe they got away with their crimes for a decade with none of their fellow officers taking notice. Keep in mind it was an FBI informant – a Reynoldsburg drug dealer Downard had strong-armed into selling confiscated drugs – who finally alerted federal agents.

US Attorney Ben Glassman, the top federal prosecutor for Ohio Southern District, said during a press conference the investigation of Downard and Mauger ended with them. The Free Press asked local federal agents whether his answer encompassed the entire Franklin County Drug Task Force.

“Yes, we can confirm the investigation is now closed,” said Jennifer Thornton, a local spokesperson for US Department of Justice.

Nevertheless, one expert of police corruption scoffs at the claim the task force will not face further scrutiny.

“Remarkably, none of the officers from Reynoldsburg police or the Franklin County Drug Task Force found it odd that the drugs being seized in these raids were never making it back to the evidence room,” said Matt Agorist of the hugely popular TheFreeThoughtProject.com, well-known for its coverage of police corruption and brutality.

Agorist, a Marine veteran and former intelligence operative for the NSA, said this is another case of the “criminal incentive created by the war on drugs and the monopoly of power granted specifically to those tasked with carrying it out.”

“Making arbitrary substances illegal, and then tasking individuals with the control of those substances creates a temptation of easy money that is hard to pass up,” he said. “Doward and Mauger’s case is hardly isolated as this scenario is but a broken record of corruption, playing over and over.”

In a side note, The Free Press would like to bring attention to the lead federal investigator in the Downard and Mauger bust. She’s FBI Special Agent Tisha Hartsough, who’s based in Columbus, and has made several high-profile arrests of Central Ohio police officers during the previous decade.

Hartsough’s job is thankless and requires a lot of courage. According to an affidavit for Downard and Mauger, the dealer turned informant told Hartsough that while never directly threatened, one of the officers made him fear for his life at one point.

An FBI spokesperson said Hartsough is part of a very small team keeping an eye on local police.