New charges against 3 ex-officers accused in heroin theft scheme

New charges against three former Philadelphia police officers accused this summer of ripping off a heroin dealer were unveiled in a federal indictment Thursday.

The indictment also laid out the details of a second scheme two of the officers are accused of hatching, to steal money from a man they believed to be a mafioso who collected gambling proceeds - but who was actually an undercover FBI agent.

The new charges had been expected since July, when former Officers Robert Snyder, James Venziale, and Mark Williams were indicted in the heroin-theft scheme.

The theft from the supposed Mafia member never happened, but according to the indictment, the plan was similar to the one used to steal nearly 300 grams of heroin.

In both cases, the officers were accused of conspiring with Angel Ortiz, described as a drug dealer who has three children with Snyder's sister-in-law.

Snyder's wife, Christal, has been indicted in both schemes as having served as a conduit between Ortiz and her husband.

Williams, a seven-year veteran assigned to the 39th District, planned to pull over Ortiz while the FBI agent was in the car. Ortiz planned to have possession of the agent's money at that time, although the indictment did not say how he would accomplish that.

Williams would discover drugs and the money taken from the agent on Ortiz and then pretend to arrest him, the indictment said. Williams would take both the drugs and the money. He also would provide Ortiz with a police property receipt for the money, to make the seizure appear legitimate in the eyes of undercover agents, the indictment said.

Williams, however, was placed on restrictive duty after the mother of one of his children filed a domestic violence complaint against him. He turned in his firearm and was not supposed to wear a police uniform or take any police action.

On July 9 - the day the theft was supposed to take place - Williams armed himself with his personal firearm, put on his uniform, and took a police wagon from the 39th District without permission, the indictment said.

He also recruited another man, Marcus Branker, who owned a Chevrolet Trailblazer equipped with emergency lights. Once Williams pulled over Ortiz, Branker was supposed to arrive with the lights flashing and pretend to be a police officer assisting Williams with the vehicle stop, authorities said.

The indictment said Williams and Branker were poised to set the plan in motion, but did not explain why the scheme wasn't launched.

Branker, 38, of Philadelphia, was the only new defendant named in the Thursday's indictment. He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment and was released on bond.

The indictment did not say how Williams knew Branker, and Branker's attorney, Michael van der Veen, said he did not want to comment.

"We're just in the process of reviewing the indictment," he said.

The three officers and four others were indicted on July 7 in the alleged heroin theft. The indictments were unsealed on July 13. The three officers have since been fired.

In addition to Ortiz and Christal Snyder, federal authorities charged another reputed dealer, Zachary Young, with planning the heroin theft.

In that scheme, all three officers were accused of stealing heroin from Ortiz's supplier, Miguel Santiago, who was the final person indicted. Santiago was a fugitive for more than month, before he was arrested Aug. 17 in the Queens borough of New York City.

All the defendants have pleaded not guilty.

Throughout the planning, Ortiz was doing business with another supposed drug dealer, who was actually an undercover DEA agent. The undercover agent was recruited into the heroin theft.

On May 14, Santiago fronted 300 grams to Ortiz, who gave the heroin to the undercover agent, according to the indictment.

Williams and his partner, Venziale, then pulled over Ortiz and the agent. They arrested Ortiz and pretended to seize the heroin - all of which was witnessed by Santiago's courier, according to the indictment.

The undercover agent was allowed to drive away with the heroin, and the officers later released Ortiz at Broad Street and Lehigh Avenue.

The goal was to avoid paying Santiago and to resell the heroin. For their efforts, Williams and Venziale were given $6,000, authorities said.

Venziale was not accused in the scheme to steal money from the undercover FBI agent, but Thursday's superseding indictment added a new charge against all seven of the original defendants - possession with intent to distribute heroin within 1,000 feet of a school.