Retired Philadelphia detective charged for allegedly letting informant raid evidence locker

• Ryan Briggs/WHYY
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  Ryan Briggs is an investigative journalist who has covered politics, criminal justice and government policy since 2011. He has worked as a staff reporter for Next City, the Philadelphia City Paper, Philly.com and City & State PA, while contributing stories to a variety of other news outlets as a freelancer, including WHYY.

(Philadelphia) — A former Philadelphia police detective who abruptly retired less than two weeks ago is now facing multiple misdemeanor charges for allegedly letting a confidential informant purloin goods from an official evidence room.

Former Detective John Logan, who until Feb. 6 was assigned to the department’s Major Crimes Auto Squad, was placed on restricted duty last year after coming under scrutiny by Internal Affairs investigators, according to Public Affairs spokesperson Eric Gripp.

Sources said Logan allegedly allowed an informant who was owed money by the department to take valuable property out of evidence in lieu of payment, including a power washer. Later, when more payments didn’t materialize, the informant reported the evidence room incident, according to sources. An arrest report lists a “confidential” witness as the source of the complaint.

Sources also said Logan’s abrupt retirement was likely an effort to avoid a formal dismissal.

The detective turned himself in at the 15th District police station on Wednesday. District Attorney Larry Krasner’s office indicated that he will face three misdemeanor charges, including tampering with public records and misapplication of government property.

At least a half dozen Philadelphia Police officers have been arrested on a variety of criminal charges in recent months.

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WHYY is the leading public media station serving the Philadelphia region, including Delaware, South Jersey and Pennsylvania. This story originally appeared on WHYY.org.