COLUMBUS, Ohio - Former Reynoldsburg Police Officer Shane M. Mauger, 42, of Columbus, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 33 months in prison for using his position as a police officer to deprive people of their civil rights by falsifying search warrant affidavits and unlawfully seizing money and property during drug trafficking investigations.
Benjamin C. Glassman, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Angela L. Byers, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Field Division, John F. Oleskowicz, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General, Chicago Field Office, Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced the sentence handed down today by U.S. District Judge Algenon L. Marbley.
Judge Marbley also fined Mauger $40,000 and ordered him to remain under court supervision for two years after he completes his prison term. Mauger’s sentence includes a requirement that he perform four hours of community service per week while under court supervision.
According to a government document submitted to the court prior to today’s sentencing, Mauger engaged in systematic corruption in his roles as a police officer and as a supervisor. Mauger conspired with another police officer, Tye L. Downard, as far back as 2006 in a conspiracy that was both long-lasting and lucrative. Downard is deceased.
Mauger lied to judges in search warrant affidavits in support of drug trafficking investigations and admitted to stealing cash during and after police searches. The conspirators stole between $150,000 and $250,000 during the course of the conspiracy. Mauger removed some of the stolen cash from a safe when he found out that federal law enforcement agencies were investigating him.
On May 27, 2016, the court accepted Mauger’s guilty pleas to one count of conspiracy to deprive persons of civil rights and one count of federal program theft.
“Citizens rely on the truthfulness and integrity of law-enforcement officers," Acting U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “The overwhelming majority of the time, this faith is well-earned. But when someone breaks the laws he or she has sworn to uphold, the public trust is severely damaged."
Acting U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI, Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), Department of Justice OIG and DEA and Assistant United States Attorneys Peter K. Glenn-Applegate, Salvador A. Dominguez, and Jessica W. Knight, who represented the United States in this case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
