WEST PALM OFFICER GUILTY OF LAUNDERING MONEY FOR DRUG DEALER

A West Palm Beach police officer was convicted Tuesday of laundering
$80,000 in drug money for a major crack cocaine dealer on his beat.

Herman A. Tureaud Sr. took bundles of cash from drug dealer Jerry Hampton,
investing the money into low-income housing. The scheme collapsed when two
West Palm Beach police officers conducting surveillance on Hampton noticed
Tureaud spending time with him.

A West Palm Beach federal jury took a little less than five hours to find
Tureaud guilty of four money-laundering charges and a single count of lying
to the Internal Revenue Service. He faces up to 85 years in prison.

After jurors left the room, U.S. District Judge Daniel T.K. Hurley ordered
U.S. marshals to take Tureaud into custody. Val Rodriguez, Tureaud's
attorney, warned that some people the police officer has arrested are still
sitting in the Palm Beach County Jail.

Tureaud showed little emotion as he took off his tie, belt and neck chain
before marshals patted him down and handcuffed him.

Among the witnesses against Tureaud in the two-week trial was Hampton, who
pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine.
Hampton was busted in March 2002 after the six-month investigation
"Operation 21 and Tamarind," named for the intersection at the heart of
Hampton's drug operation.

Tureaud, 49, spent 13 years with the West Palm Beach Police Department,
working the previous 14 years as a law enforcement officer in Louisiana. He
was indicted in December.

Prosecutors told the jury in their closing arguments Monday that it could
convict Tureaud under two theories: that he knew Hampton was a drug dealer
or that he turned a blind eye to Hampton passing him what he should have
known was drug money.

"Officer Tureaud is a seasoned police officer. We're talking about an
individual who is streetwise," Assistant U.S. Attorney Rolando Garcia said.
"He either knew or deliberately closed his eyes."

Garcia said that all the other police officers who worked with Tureaud
along the Tamarind Avenue corridor knew of Hampton's reputation.

Rodriguez told jurors they couldn't convict Tureaud for what he should have
known, only for what he did know.

"He did not know Jerry Hampton was involved in illegal drug activity," the
defense attorney said.

Rodriguez said Tureaud will appeal the verdict. Tureaud had been on
administrative leave while awaiting trial, Rodriguez said.

Staff Writer Peter Franceschina contributed to this report.