Department of Justice

A former Toledo police officer was charged in federal court with possession of a stolen firearm.

 

Curtis Stone, 56, of Delta, was in possession of a Taurus .380-caliber pistol on December 4, 2018, that was previously recorded as being destroyed by the Toledo Police Department.

 

According to an affidavit filed in U.S. District Court:

 

Toledo police officers recovered a loaded Canik 9 mm pistol during a traffic stop in September 2018. Officers charged an occupant of the car with having a weapon under disability since he had previous convictions for drug and gang offenses.

 

An ATF task force officer subsequently investigated the incident and discovered the firearm had previously been recovered by Toledo police in 2015 and marked as destroyed in February 2016 by Stone, who was assigned to the Toledo Police Department’s property room at the time.

 

Stone retired from the Toledo Police Department in January 2018.

 

Toledo police obtained and executed a search warrant for Stone’s residence in Delta on December 4, 2018. They recovered the Taurus .380-caliber pistol, ten miscellaneous magazines for firearms, miscellaneous ammunition and two Toledo Police Department evidence tags/labels.

 

The Taurus pistol found in Stone’s home was previously recorded in Toledo Police Department property room records by Stone as having been destroyed.

 

“Any time a former police officer, like this defendant, appears to have broken the law, we will hold them accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman. “His conduct is not representative of the vast majority of police officers, who go to work every day looking to make their community safer.”

 

“This case is a disappointing example of an individual that violated the public’s trust as well as the trust of his colleagues,” said Toledo Police Chief George Kral. “We will continue to work with our federal partners to fight crime, wherever it leads. Toledoans should rest assured, the Toledo Police Department is a top-notch police organization that will hold those who fall short accountable.” 

 

The matter remains under investigation.

 

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant's role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation.  In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.

 

This case was investigated by the Toledo Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosive. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gene Crawford.

 

A charge is only an allegation and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.