Tennessee Officers Arrested on Drug Charges

Knoxville News-Sentinel by J.J. Stambaugh - September 8, 2008

Two Campbell County law enforcement offi cers were arrested Fridayand charged with allegedly stealing drugs from the Jacksboro Police Department and swapping them for prescription drugs, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.
Ancil Brian Parker, 39, of Lafollette, and Tonya Robinson, 34, of Jacksboro, both were named in indictments returned by a Campbell County grand jury, a TBI press release said. They were each charged with delivery of a schedule II controlled substance and official misconduct; Robinson also was charged with one count of theft under $500. Parker was a Jacksboro police officer, and Robinson was a corrections officer at the Campbell County Jail, which is operated by the Campbell County Sheriff's Office.

The two officers had a personal relationship, according to the TBI. In April and May of last year, both marijuana and cocaine that had been seized as evidence in drug investigations were stolen from the police department, the release said. "The stolen marijuana and cocaine was then given to a third person in exchange for prescription drugs," the release said. "Robinson's theft charge stems from stealing from a prisoner at the jail." Parker was held on $10,000 bond, while Robinson's bond was set at $50,000, the release said. It wasn't immediately clear if the two suspects were still employed as law enforcement personnel. A third Campbell County lawman was indicted earlier this week for allegedly raping a female motorist during a traffi c stop two months ago. Jeremy Cross was a LaFollette police officer when he stopped the female motorist on July 5 and "sex acts were performed in exchange for the victim not going to jail," according to the TBI. He has been charged with one count of aggravated rape, two counts of offi cial misconduct and one count of offi cial oppression. He has been released from jail pending trial after posting a $50,000 bond, the release said.