Fifth Baltimore City Police Officer Pleads Guilty To Federal Racketeering Conspiracy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                          Contact ELIZABETH MORSE

www.justice.gov/usao/md                                                                 at (410) 209-4811

Baltimore, Maryland – Sergeant Thomas Allers, age 49, of Linthicum Heights, Maryland pleaded guilty today to charges of racketeering conspiracy and racketeering offenses, including nine robberies. 

The guilty plea was announced by Acting United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Stephen M. Schenning and Special Agent in Charge Gordon B. Johnson of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office.

According to his plea agreement, Allers stole money from victims, swore out false affidavits and submitted false official incident reports. Sergeant Allers joined the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) on July 22, 1996.  He became the officer-in-charge of the Gun Trace Task Force (GTTF), a specialized unit created to investigate firearms crimes, on or about July 25, 2013.

Allers admits that he participated in nine robberies and was armed with his BPD service firearm during the commission of the robberies. In some cases, there was no evidence of criminal conduct by the victims; Allers stole money that had been earned lawfully. The amounts stolen ranged from $700 to $66,000.  

For example, on or about April 3, 2015, Allers and coconspirators executed a search warrant at a residence in Baltimore City and discovered approximately $6,000 in the home. This money was a combination of money that the homeowners had made buying and selling used cars and a tax refund the wife had received.  Allers and his coconspirators took approximately $5,700 of the $6,000, and then filed a false incident report stating that only $233 had been seized.

In another incident, on or about March 2, 2016, Allers and his co-conspirators executed a search warrant at a residence in Baltimore City. The resident of the home had $200 in her purse, which her daughter had received the previous day during her birthday party, $900 to pay her rent for that month, $300 to pay down the amount of money she owed Baltimore Gas & Electric for utilities and $8,000 which were the proceeds of drug sales.  Allers approved the false report that stated that only $1,624 had been seized from home, when in fact, he had stolen more than $7,000.

In another incident, on or about April 28, 2016, Allers and coconspirators arrested an individual who resided at a residence, then robbed the occupants of the residence of over $10,000.  Allers approved a false incident report which failed to report that any money had been taken from the residence, when in fact he and his coconspirators stole more than $10,000.  Following this robbery, one of the residents was shot and killed because he could not repay a drug-related debt. 

According to the plea agreement, Allers prepared and submitted false official incident and arrest reports, reports of property seized from arrestees, and charging documents. The false reports concealed the fact that the officers had stolen money from individuals. 

In total, Allers has admitted to stealing over $90,000.00.

Allers faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.  United States District Judge Catherine C. Blake has scheduled sentencing for February 23, 2018 at 11 a.m. Allers remains detained.

Acting United States Attorney Stephen M. Schenning commended the FBI for their work in the investigation. Acting U.S. Attorney Schenning also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Leo J. Wise and Derek E. Hines, who are prosecuting this Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force case.