Lloyd drove the contractor to a bank and asked him to withdraw a $3,500 bank check while keeping the man`s driver`s license, county police said. The man said he told Lloyd he didn`t want any problems, and Lloyd reportedly replied, «The problem would be if I took you into the woods.» District police said the incident occurred on June 25 and was reported to police the same day. «During the argument, the suspect identified himself as a police officer,» police said in a statement. «The victim said she was afraid of being arrested and complied with Lloyd`s demands.» The victim turned to a friend who is a Prince George`s County police lieutenant for advice on what to do about the incident, police said. Lloyd`s arrest comes amid heightened surveillance of police behavior on the ground and nationally in the wake of the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis. Floyd`s death, which came after a police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes, sparked widespread protests calling for sweeping police reforms and calls for cuts to departmental budgets. Juan A. Diaz, 46, of Columbia, was indicted this week, more than a month after Detective James Lloyd was charged with extortion, kidnapping and threatening to arrest a contractor whose work he was not happy with. Prosecutors said Lloyd drove his victim to a bank and ordered him to withdraw money for repayment after threatening to arrest the man. Lloyd told the contractor that he wanted to be reimbursed $3,500 because he was not satisfied with his job.
According to the indictment documents, while Lloyd continued to threaten the man, the other detectives allegedly took photos of the contractor`s car. The victim then told several people what had happened, including a Prince George County officer and a former Baltimore City police officer. Both asked the victim to report the incident to the police. The contractor told Lloyd that he didn`t want any problems because of the dispute, which led the officer to reply, «The problem would be if I took you into the woods,» police said. Lloyd contacted the contractor on June 18 to let him know that some of the pavers had come off and that he wanted the deck to be larger, according to the documents. The contractor told Lloyd that he could repair the pavers, but that he would need a payment of $1,400 to expand the patio. Lloyd would have accepted the prize. «You will give me back my money and I will give you freedom,» Lloyd told the contractor, the document said. The report also adds details about how Lloyd exercised his powers as an officer. It all started when the police sergeant`s partner asked to expand the terrace. The victim, whose name was obscured in the public report, told the couple that they could enlarge the space but would have to ask for more.
When he arrived home to work on the project, he realized that the men hired to do the work for him had blocked their vehicles from a vehicle parked on the street. The police powers of the three detectives have also been suspended and are tasked with administrative tasks pending an internal investigation. Then, according to police, he let the victim get into Lloyd`s car. The victim told police she feared being arrested and complied with Lloyd`s requests to go to the bank and get a certified check for reimbursement, officials said. «The nature of the reported abuse of power also undermines our police department`s ability to investigate homicides in a city that continues to be plagued by violence,» Scott said in a statement. The charge stems from a dispute over home renovation work, Baltimore County police said. The indictments show that the incident occurred on June 25 and was reported to district police on the same day. «I have spoken to Commissioner Harrison and I fully support the steps he has taken to address stakeholders. Any allegation of unlawful acts committed by a member of the department will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,» said Young, a Democrat.
«We have a police force full of men and women who take their oath seriously to protect and serve. We will not defend members who violate this sacred promise or public trust. The contractor arrived at Lloyd`s home on the morning of June 25 to continue the work, but when he arrived, he noticed that a vehicle was locking into his crew`s car. Lloyd got out of another vehicle and told the victim they had a problem with the contract. He demanded that he see the victim`s licence, and upon surrender, the victim claims that Lloyd takes out a file with his photo and asks the contractor if he is aware that his licence is suspended due to child support. A Baltimore County police sergeant was arrested for extortion and kidnapping. According to WBAL TV, three other municipal police detectives have been suspended in connection with the case. The victim told police he was scared because he could see Lloyd being armed under his suit. While they were talking, three other officers, also armed and on duty, arrived at the apartment.
He demanded a refund and confronted the contractor with information about the suspension of his driver`s license and said he could arrest him, according to the charge documents. The sergeant was not happy with the deck after some stones came off, and Lloyd`s partner wanted it to be much larger, prompting the contractor to demand an additional $1,400, according to indictment documents obtained from the Baltimore Sun. The Baltimore Sun was unable to reach the contractor for comment. A sergeant in the Baltimore Police Department`s homicide unit was detained without bail Friday after allegedly blackmailing, kidnapping and threatening a contractor whose work he was not happy with and who he drove to a bank to withdraw money for repayment. The victim said he «became anxious for his safety due to the aggressive tone of the conversation, the threat of his arrest as well as visible police badges and firearms,» district police wrote in adversarial documents. Eldridge said Larbi and Taylor, who have not been charged, remain in the administrative department, with their police powers suspended due to the ongoing investigation. Suiter was shot in the head on November 15, 2017, while conducting a follow-up investigation into a homicide in West Baltimore. Police said they believed he was shot at close range with his own rifle, and police now consider his death a suicide. However, it remains classified as an unsolved homicide. He said his client was cooperating with police and prosecutors and «just trying to live his life. He`s a family man and a hard-working guy. The entrepreneur, Luis Torres Hernandez, declined to comment Friday through his lawyer Bobby Zirkin.
Diaz had previously been identified as one of four Baltimore police officers present at the confrontation with the contractor. Lloyd, a 21-year-old veteran of the municipal police who was the lead detective in the investigation into the death of Detective Sean Suiter, was upset by a patio a contractor had built, district police said. District police removed phone records, bank records, and surveillance footage from the bank to confirm the contractor`s account. .