A former Wayne County Sheriff’s Deputy, Dorian Merriewether, 36 of Farmington Hills, Michigan was indicted by a federal grand jury in Detroit on charges of extortion, conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana, and use of a telephone in furtherance of a controlled substance offense, United States Attorney Stephen J. Murphy announced today.

Murphy was joined in the announcement by Special Agent in Charge Andrew G. Arena, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Wayne County Sheriff Warren C. Evans, whose agency played a central collaborative role in the investigation.

The 8-count indictment charges that between 2004 and August 2005, Merriewether used his position as a Wayne County Sheriff’s Deputy to transport controlled substances, cellular telephones and alcohol to individuals detained in the Wayne County Jail. The indictment also charges Merriewether with several counts of distributing and conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana.

United States Attorney Stephen J. Murphy said, “A deputy Sheriff who is sworn to uphold the law cannot be permitted to violate that law, as today’s Indictment charges. My office will vigorously investigate and pursue such allegations of police corruption.”

SAC Arena said, “Police corruption matters are a priority of the FBI and we will continue to aggressively investigate those cases where public officials have betrayed the trust of the citizens which they have the responsibility to protect.”

Wayne County Sheriff Warren C. Evans said, “"This type of activity will not be tolerated in this department. We will continue to actively and aggressively ferret out illegal activity wherever it exists."

An indictment is only a charge 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. The case was investigated by special agents of the FBI as well as the internal affairs department of the Wayne County Sheriff’s Office.