Former St. Louis Metropolitan Police Detective Sentenced on Federal Fraud Charges

ST. LOUIS, MO—The United States Attorney’s Office announced today that Kevin Shade was sentenced to 27 months in prison in connection with falsifying inspections for S & H Parking Systems.

U.S. Attorney Richard Callahan issued the following statement:

"Criminal investigations are by law confidential and normally U.S. Attorney’s Offices only speak through the filing of criminal charges. Nevertheless, when allegations of criminal wrongdoing are made concerning an important public institution such as the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, the public and the police deserve to know when such an investigation is concluded. That time is now.

All investigative leads have been fully explored and followed. It pains me to state the obvious, but this Office takes allegations of police wrongdoing most seriously. In the last two years, unrelated to the towing investigation, we have successfully prosecuted multiple instances of police misconduct and that same dedication and effort has been present in the S&H Towing matter. As with any investigation, however, not all allegations are true and not all true allegations are provable. What is provable has been charged and what is not provable has not. No additional criminal charges are anticipated. I want to publicly thank and commend the agents who worked on this matter. None of these charges were self-proving and without their hard work and dedication, the four defendants who were successfully prosecuted might otherwise have gone unpunished. I also want to remind the public that the vast majority of the men and women who work in the St. Louis police department are honorable human beings who deserve our respect and gratitude for the job they do. The acts of a few bad officers should not tarnish an entire department."

According to the facts filed with the court, between October 2004 and August 2008, St. Louis Metropolitan Police Detective Kevin Shade passed vehicles for inspection despite obvious flaws, and then signed Vehicle Examination Certificates falsely stating there was no apparent damage or only slight damage to the vehicles. In exchange for performing these and other faulty inspections, Detective Shade received cash payments from an employee of S & H Parking Systems.

Shade, 36, St. Louis, MO, 63111, plead guilty to one felony count of mail fraud in August 2009, and appeared today for sentencing before United States District Judge Rodney W. Sippel.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, United States Postal Inspection Service and the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Hal Goldsmith handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.