By Josh Jarman
The Columbus Dispatch
ZANESVILLE, Ohio — A Zanesville police officer accused of dealing drugs by the FBI offered to pay his baby sitter in Percocet, and his wife sold morphine tablets in front of their children, according to a federal complaint unsealed yesterday.
Donald E. Peterson, 33, was arrested Wednesday along with four other people and is accused of arranging drug deals while off-duty.
Two other Zanesville officers, Sean Beck, 28, and Trevor Fusner, 31, were arrested in October and accused of scheming to steal a kilo of cocaine from a Columbus drug dealer. Also charged in that case is Chad Mills II, 29, a Genesis HealthCare System officer.
Now, the loss of a third officer in two months has Zanesville officials struggling to fill their shoes. New officers have not been hired to replace Beck and Fusner, who both resigned after their arrests. Officials expect Peterson to follow suit.
“We’re in the process of testing for new officers, and we’re trying to get that done as quickly as possible,” said Robert Brandford, the city’s public-safety director.
Brandford said the losses should not create a noticeable decrease in service, because schedules will be shifted to cover the patrol routes.
Peterson and his wife, Serritha D. Peterson, 29, were arrested with Shelly M. Tyson, 32; Steven Gibson, 65; and Gary Moody, 50. Moody is from the village of White Cottage, and the rest live in Zanesville.
Each was charged in U.S. District Court in Columbus with distributing a controlled substance and conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.
According to the federal complaint, either Peterson or his wife sold drugs to a federal informant while under surveillance.
Although the complaint repeatedly says Peterson told the informant he was going to get narcotics “from a guy at work,” Police Chief Eric Lambes stands by his public assertion that no other Zanesville officers are under investigation or involved in wrongdoing.
“I have been assured by the FBI that he was not referring to an employee of the Zanesville Police Department,” Lambes said.
Copyright 2007 The Columbus Dispatch