Five Years Ago This Month, Police Officers Robbed a Texas Man in Mendocino County; One Suspect Now Faces New Charges

Officer Joe Huffaker

Officer Joe Huffaker after receiving “a lifesaving award” in 2015. [Crop of a photo on the City of Rohnert Park Police and Fire Facebook page]

On December 5, 2017, two men claiming to be ATF agents stopped Zeke Flatten, a former undercover officer, just north of Frog Woman Rock in Mendocino County and robbed him of three pounds of Humboldt County marijuana. Yesterday, one of the men alleged to have been involved, a former Rohnert Park police officer, Joseph Huffaker, was back in court facing new federal charges that could add up to over 90 years in prison.

Flatten told us in January of 2018, just a month after he was robbed, that, at the time he was stopped, he first thought the men were pretending to be officers but were actually criminals and he worried that his life might be in danger. “For probably the first 30 seconds I wondered, ‘Do I need to break out and run on foot,’” he explained. “I knew it wasn’t right. There was not any kind of identification.”

But then he saw something that he said reassured him. “…I saw their license [plate] was California Exempt,” he explained. “I felt relief. These are cops.”

He said he could tell the plate was authentic.  “I never once doubted the plate,” he said. “I knew that it was real. It wasn’t paper. It wasn’t cardboard. It had screws…It was on a police [type] car…I think my nervousness or anxiety decreased when I knew that at least one of them was a legitimate cop.”

Having been an undercover investigator in Texas for several years when he was in his twenties, Flatten said he instinctively trusted law enforcement and believed that at the worse he was facing paying an attorney because he was operating in a legal gray area.

But, the officers acted oddly. “They never ran my name to see if I was wanted nor did they search any other part of the vehicle, or my person,” he told us at the time.

Sgt Jacy Tatum

Jacy Tatum being sworn in as sergeant in 2015. [Photo from the City of Rohnert Park Police and Fire]

That stop, our subsequent articles, and the attempted coverup that followed have already led to one officer, Sgt. Jacy Tatum, former Rohnert Park officer of the year and head of a drug interdiction team, pleading guilty to tax evasion, making a false report to a federal investigator, and conspiracy to commit extortion under the color of law.

Huffaker, however, continues to plead innocent to all the charges against him. (See here for the most recent indictment from the FBI.) In the indictment, the the US Attorney explains to the Court, “After the publication on February 11, 2018, of two articles [by Redheaded Blackbelt]…Tatum, in the presence of HUFFAKER, contacted his and HUFFAKER’S supervisor to get approval to issue a press release… .” The Attorney alleges that Tatum then issued the press release which contained information about another person carrying Humboldt County cannabis south who was also stopped by Tatum and Huffaker and seized “at least 23 pounds of marijuana…while failing to provide a citation or any other
documentation related to the stop… .” and they falsely alleged it to belong to Zeke Flatten in the press release in an effort to cover their theft of Flatten’s cannabis. (Read more in this detailed account of how we uncovered the falsifications in their story here.)

Flatten told us in an interview yesterday that though he understands that Huffaker is entitled to the presumption of innocence, he’s frustrated that the former officer is costing the taxpayers so much money.

“He’s switched attorneys four times,” Flatten stated. He said he was disgusted that a former officer who “took an oath to protect the people” would continue to slow the process down as much as possible. Flatten said that he respected former Sgt. Tatum for at least standing up in court “with a straight back” and accepting responsibility for his crimes.

The new charges and the extended sentences faced by Huffaker are an indication of how how bad the crimes he committed are, Flatten alleged. “He’s a pretty hard core criminal,” Flatten told us. “Not many people face 93 years in federal prison.”

The entire charges and possible sentences against Huffaker are listed in this screenshot of the indictment below.

Huffaker New Indictment charges

Note: Counts 2 & 3 are counted as 20 years imprisonment for each.

 

Earlier Chapters:

Facebooktwitterpinterestmail

Join the discussion! For rules visit: https://kymkemp.com/commenting-rules

Comments system how-to: https://wpdiscuz.com/community/postid/10599/

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

80 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Charlie
Guest
Charlie
1 year ago

Convict, tattoo “Cop gone bad” on hjs forehead, and lock him up.

Giant Squirrel
Guest
Giant Squirrel
1 year ago
Reply to  Charlie

Put him in general population and let him try to get along

Screenshot_20221215-195311_Twitter.jpg
Neverlayup
Guest
Neverlayup
1 year ago
Reply to  Giant Squirrel

Love it! Looks like the snowflakes are crying as usual!

Patriot
Guest
Patriot
1 year ago
Reply to  Giant Squirrel

They say. The way to tell a successful drug dealer from a task force cop. Is the cop has more toys and his truck is lifted higher

Prometheus
Guest
Prometheus
1 year ago
Reply to  Giant Squirrel

And then drop a dime to the GP that he has an “R” in his jacket.

Permanently on Monitoring
Guest
Permanently on Monitoring
1 year ago

Officially, I got nothing more to say on this matter.

Everyone was paid off, the cops were doing whatever it is they did, and, Mr Flatten, who could have gone to Law School himself in the intervening 5 years and who was transporting 3 or 30 pounds of Humboldt Flower, for whatever purpose, got revenge on some cops, most of which probably still work for Rohnert Park…

In the constellation of corrupt, incompetent and deeply nepotistic government employees, Tatum and Huffaker probably are nothing unusual, and if recent stories from Ukiah and Willits are not enough proof, just have a look at the Sheriffs of Mendo and Humboldt, who are looking like a poor value for resources…

Flatten, I never believed in the first place, still don’t, but I have to wonder what he knew going in, and if he staged the whole thing for publicity, damages, or for the eventual punishment and exposure brought to Rohnert Park and Law Enforcement in general…

Perhaps there was a conspiracy to expose another conspiracy while lining pockets with damages…

If nothing else, I have learned that anything could happen if there is enough money lying around, and in light of the general craziness of life in a quirky and lawless neighborhood, and then I remember where I currently reside, not far from Hopland…

Tim
Guest
Tim
1 year ago

When this story first came out, there was so many people on this site saying Zeke was a liar. His story was real enough to get these cops to try to attempt a cover up, Jacy Tatum
also pled guilty to the crimes.
So many people have been robbed on the north coast from dirty cops, and I really enjoy seeing some of them get caught

Permanently on Monitoring
Guest
Permanently on Monitoring
1 year ago
Reply to  Tim

What I said was that there were no witnesses, and no evidence.

Whether there was wrongdoing is a matter of hearsay, but the reporters and investigators from KQED blew this open by showing that there were no records, improperly kept records, and violated policies and procedures, which is where the Federal Case grew.

I believe that North Coast Cops steal, and I believe that power corrupts, but I also believe that justice for cops is seldom acquired.

Whatever Zeke Flatten is doing now, a career in whistleblowing seems like it would be short-lived, but a book and a movie probably could be profitable.

The fact is, Mr Flatten was breaking the law, but was never charged, and then he was paid handsomely to go away.

I wish I was hearing the last of this, finally, but hope is a difficult thing to contain.

I doubt that Huffaker will serve a single day, but you never know… Other than that, it all appears to be a waste of resources, and worse crimes are committed every day which will never be prosecuted…

Tim
Guest
Tim
1 year ago

The proof is the falsified police report
Look up proposition 215 if you want to know what the laws were for medical marijuana
It’s not a waste of resources to prosecute dirty cops
Huffaker will Serve time because Tatum already is cooperating with the feds and gave them all the information

Another glass of koolaid?
Guest
Another glass of koolaid?
1 year ago

Are you serious?!?! No evidence? His partner pleaded guilty and admitted to wrong doing. What more evidence do you want? This is just one case of who knows how many that these two robbed.

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Tim

Was there anyone not engaging in illegal behvior who was robbed by these criminal cops? Being an admitted criminal makes taking their word for anything more difficult. Because- tah dah- they have a history of dishonesty. There is nothing surprising in that.

sohumjoe
Member
sohumjoe
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

I remember those days, having to drive through that gauntlet while riding dirty, and always seeing those guys. Always made it through. I always lived by the rule “Don’t break the law, while you’re breaking the law”
Glad they’re gone

Prometheus
Guest
Prometheus
1 year ago
Reply to  sohumjoe

In the early days of the CAMP Program, I was amazed at what the CAMP officers were taking from the growers because there was little or no supervision. Officers volunteered to participate from around the state. They figured they were stealing from criminals, so it was OK. They seemed to focus on precious metals and jewelry at the time. With the assistance of Ron Sinoway, I was able to kick the completely unprofessional CAMP Program out of the Eel River Conservation Camp and they were forced to burn elsewhere. That was decades ago now and the situation has completely reversed itself…

Joe
Guest
Joe
1 year ago
Reply to  Tim

You mean so many drug dealing criminals have been robbed

Ben
Guest
Ben
1 year ago

The story is real bud they stopped me in December 2015 and tried to steal my shit but I literally cussed them out and raised hell bc I knew they were up to no good and they let me go

Ryan
Guest
Ryan
1 year ago
Reply to  Ben

I’ll have to uncover my records of my unreported incident. Pretty sure it was October of ‘15 possibly ‘16 that they robbed me. No seizure notice just smiling faces from Tatum and company. “We are not going to do anything. Next time if you are going to continue to do this, you need a transport license from a dispensary”. Of course I wasn’t paying attention to my “protective” papers and had forgotten where they were as I stood feet from the car as they rummaged through this and that not finding anything. Later 15 minutes down the road , I unzipped a side pocket on a small duffel bag and behold “ some paperwork “ Granted although everybit of what I told these two was true ( that this was going to “named” dispensaries) my paperwork was for something else. Later I did get “protection” from the dispensaries. And the lawyer behind the paperwork I did have said “ chalk it up to the cost of doing business “. Make no mistake about it though, these two were “professionals” going as far as to look on the bottom of these indiscriminate amounts of turkey bags and contractor bags ( all material being small bud – they must’ve been upset!) for particular strain names etc. as they stuffed the material into a large contractor bag or two ( there wasn’t that much material ) before we both headed on down the road. One other thing of note. Chp pulled behind their vehicle soon after they pulled me over and quickly left. Like a few seconds later. Hmm

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Ryan

Why does no one seem to make the connection to the fact that engaging in outlaw behavior makes them vulnerable to other outlaws even if they wear badges? Somehow there seems to be the idea that violating the law is part of the game on their part but not on the part of police. It is likely that the never ending farce of pot growing illegality for big bucks went on for quite a while before those cops got the idea of taking a share of the wealth for themselves. Crime is a virus that corrupts.

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

Of course not. That would be a serously stupid thing to say. In fact so stupid that the only thing I can make of you trying to put those words in my mouth is as attempt to trivialize the argument by implying it is equally stupid.

Lost Croat OutburstD
Member
Lost Croat Outburst
1 year ago
Reply to  Guest

Yeah, well it sure reads that way if you read what you wrote. So it was stupid if you’re going to write it. That’s the trouble of writing. People can read it and use a dictionary.

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago

Unfortunately neither of those thoughts about people reading and using a dictionary is usual. It is common for people to hear what they want to hear and equally true for them to interpret what they read the same way.

What being involved in illegal businesses does is give cops the cover they need to engage in their own criminal behavior. It makes it safer for them. Which is what I said.

Lost Croat OutburstD
Member
Lost Croat Outburst
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

I am so glad that RHHBB has been front-and-center on these cases of corruption and crime within our local police departments. What is really frightening is we have no idea what side our local LEOs will be on if the Modern Republican Party attempts a Trump-led coup and violent overthrow of the United States Constitution. We already know Trump wants this and Putin is using Traitor Tucker’s broadcasts in propaganda.

Lost Croat OutburstD
Member
Lost Croat Outburst
1 year ago
Reply to  Guest

It’s extremely naive to suggest that police were always wonderful until marijuana came along. Plus, these cases fall under the then-new Prop 215. You don’t think that cops were corrupt during Prohibition of alcohol?

Name*
Guest
Name*
1 year ago
Reply to  Guest

Power corrupts. “Crime” can be arbitrary. Then it makes you vulnerable to people abusing their public trust. This case was about people using their badge to steal something people wanted, somebody worked to produce, and some “criminals” made an honest transaction for.

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Name*

Of course “crime” is arbitary. Chopping off the head of a daughter who sees a man outside of her parent’s permission is in some places not considered a crime. It is an honor killing and the crime is the daughter’s. Standards of what is considered a crime varies. Both by the nature of society and individual.

What makes law valuable it that it is an attempt to apply such choices uniformly without resorting to personal value judgements. The individual defers to the state’s interpretation to achieve a compatible society. The alternative is a war lord state where the strongest gets to make all the decisions. That is is the risk in the individual deciding for themselves what crime is. And, frankly, the notorious violence and greed of the pot grower culture comes from that choice. And the criminal cops are just part of that culture.

Humboldt Lady
Guest
Humboldt Lady
1 year ago

Officially you sure said a lot, for having nothing more to say on this matter. Sure glad your not a judge in our court systems. Or a cop, I hope. I for one, am super grateful to Kym for reporting on this, and continuing to do so after all these years. For Zeke reporting it as well. This kind of shit happens and has been happening for decades. Glad these guys are being held accountable for their actions.

The Real Brian
Member
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

I remember the bet.

Name*
Guest
Name*
1 year ago
Reply to  The Real Brian

“Officially, I got nothing more to say on this matter.”…..I’ll just keep typing while occasionally grunting.

Permanently on Monitoring
Guest
Permanently on Monitoring
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

There was a bet? I know, five years and all that…

Anybody who travels while editing comments on a news blog needs a vacation…

If Mr Flatten had a witness to the original offense, or a dash-cam, or anything at all besides his outrage at being “robbed” by “two phony cops” who might have been “so and so from Hopland Rancheria”, I might have not been so unbelieving.

Continuous exposure to these items over time has shown that prosecution of sworn officers may be possible, and Federal prosecution should be more instructive.

Obviously, this wasn’t just two cops, it was a conspiracy. I wonder now, if Flatten wasn’t in on the whole thing…

OH and Trump may yet be indicted for conspiring to incite an overthrow of the Federal Government…

Flatten may have been a “former cop” of some sort, but once a cop…

It has always surprised me that people from Humboldt trust his words.

Last edited 1 year ago
Permanently on Monitoring
Guest
Permanently on Monitoring
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

Well, I was present in a community that held an election to sell their District Hospital to an obvious con-artist, and 85% of the people who voted, voted to do it, even though the con-man was clearly associated with other con-men, and his whole operation was an obvious fraud… (see: Beau Gertz and Surprise Valley Hospital)

A Stanford dropout started a diagnostics company called Theranos, claimed to have a magic machine that could do hundreds of clinical tests on a single drop of blood, and Elithabeth Holmes defrauded investors of hundreds of millions of dollars, broke laws by the hundreds over a period of years, and Theranos was eventually shut down by the Federal Government, Ms Holmes was finally prosecuted, and she received 11 years in Country Club prison…

I have to say that Huffaker and Tatum resemble “clown-car criminals” by comparison to the CARES act scams, the stealing of $30 Billion from the EDD etc, etc, not to mention the entire Trump Presidency, which was the epitome of an American Criminal fooling a supposed majority of the American Population…

There are so many ways that these two cops could have been caught, and the story, the REAL story, will probably never be known…

If I made a bet, it seems like “successful prosecution” probably would have been involved, and using evidence supplied by two known crooked cops and one “former cop of some sort” who is a known marijuana transporter by his own account, seems a bit shaky to me.

We will see what we will see, and I don’t feel like looking through all the episodes and items and comments, either.

Looking forward to the end of the story, hope to live that long, and many actual criminals are booked and released every day.

I know you love weed and hate cops, and it is interesting, and I can barely believe how fast 5 years flew by…


Permanently on Monitoring
Guest
Permanently on Monitoring
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

I respect all that, and I believe that you mean well.

I have lived a few days, seen some stuff, and mostly, my life has been lived away from criminals, crooked cops and con artists.

The story stank. Mr Flatten stirred a pot and made a stew.

Please don’t think I will reverse my opinion of Flatten, Huffaker or Tatum, and I am used to not getting the whole story…

I don’t have your energy to be exposed to the AP wire, endless news sources or scanner traffic, and I see your predilection for reportage as nearly a compulsion, and I fear for your health and sanity, sometimes.

Like I said, I want to see the results, feel that another 5 years may pass, and I hope that vicious rapist cops and thieving public employees will be scrubbed out wherever they are found.

I used to have respect for LEO’s, and now, not so much.

There’s good people and bad ones. But there’s plenty to not like about this story.

Echo
Guest
Echo
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

A luckyman from Laytonville was renting the ranch up on the north end of Sherwood road in the 80’s. The same ranch the movie star and his sons later loved on. One fall evening at dusk a two man DEA helicopter landed near his garden. They filled black garbage bags full of cola’s and off they flew. Not another word or action was ever done about that to anyone. The feds are the worst. The fellow still lives in Laytonville.

Canyon oak
Guest
Canyon oak
1 year ago

Just to be clear, one of these discredited officers appears to represent a life informed by color.
Just this alone changes the language, narrative and allowances in this case.
Consider the American empires history of targeting black and brown bodies for minor marijuana offenses, harmless shoplifting or non-violent carjacking.
Doesn’t Officer Tatum deserve a little gravy after all black and brown people have been through?
Am I understanding our movement correctly?
We changed a historical place name on the Ukrainian River to ‘frog woman rock’, can’t we change the rules to free Officer Jacy Tatum too?
Say his name!👨🏻‍🍼

ABA
Guest
ABA
1 year ago
Reply to  Canyon oak

More thinly veiled racism from Canyon Oak.

Canyon oak
Guest
Canyon oak
1 year ago
Reply to  ABA

Nice left wing catcall, now dispute that I am using your movements logic and terminology incorrectly.
It’s always about race, your rules.

Name*
Guest
Name*
1 year ago
Reply to  ABA

Grasping at a narrative that fits the reparations fantasy. This is a common trope, used by the Nazis, and Milosevic, and in Rawanda: “these people(not like you) want what’s yours!”
It’s a deflection. Bunion Joke is so desperate to telegraph blatant racism, he/sh/it makes up connections, to skip over the fact this case is about Hunsaker. The realities of race in the USA may be too complex for simple thinkers. Many people of color came here after the Slave trade, from all over the world. White Americans deserve payback too from the elite families of inherited wealth who have clutched their fortunes since they tried to secede from the Union. Most wealth in America is inherited, in vast amounts un recognizable to normal citizens. That volume accumulating to the richest is increasing. Better for them to have their lap dog Tucker bark about Socialism.(heir to the Swanson’s fortune, his dad was a race baiting journalist, so Tucker is a great example of a family-wealth-made man.)

Mendo
Guest
Mendo
1 year ago
Reply to  Canyon oak

Jc tatum hid behind a badge to work as if above the law i read all this bruce smith the good ol boys running around robbing the emerald criminals wasnt hoyle just as much a part of all this?

thetallone
Guest
thetallone
1 year ago
Reply to  Mendo

Yes, cops in the pot division in Mendo have been stealing pot and reselling it since the 70’s. The only reason they’re not doing it now is that it’s basically worthle$$. Then you have the DA extorting growers to reduce their charges. Someone I know was given the choice; pay 50k or get a felony, a typical scenario. What a shit show. Will any of these crooked cops do time, or will they be pardoned by the crooked DA?

Last edited 1 year ago
Ben
Guest
Ben
1 year ago
Reply to  Canyon oak

This is a joke right?

ABA
Guest
ABA
1 year ago
Reply to  Ben

No, he has a long history of making racist comments.

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  ABA

At least his heavy handed but developed sarcasm means he is aware of his choices. Others calling racism at every turn are clearly less aware of their own.

Actually
Guest
Actually
1 year ago
Reply to  Guest

Uh, no not really,

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Actually

Uh,yes really.

Dano
Guest
Dano
1 year ago
Reply to  Canyon oak

Grow up. Your attempt at satire are not humorous, but do provide incite into your character. Tell me where the non-white man hurt you?

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Dano

It’s the holier-than-thou race baiter that was being satirized. Not the non-white man. Not a subtle difference to have missed.

Name*
Guest
Name*
1 year ago
Reply to  Guest

Grunion Poke brought race into a non race issue. OOOHHH, but he was satirizing a super reverse racism that a racist race baiter MIGHT raise by acting racist. Sure. Super relevant here. I now see that pointing out racism is racist because it offends racists.

Mendocino Mamma
Guest
Mendocino Mamma
1 year ago

When this incident was exposed and somebody listened it was a good thing. They call people crazy or a LIAR when bad actions are questioned. The corruption ran deep and long far before this incident. And, guess what… it continues to this day. Zeke survived. Some have died in the name of dirty cop cover ups. RIP Steve.

Vance
Guest
Vance
1 year ago

where is the robbery charge

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago

No one in the world is more outraged than a criminal who runs into cops who are worse criminals. And the irony of a former cop turned criminal, operating in a “legal gray area”, who is “disgusted” by the maniplulation of the court system after getting stiffed by criminal cops is bitter indeed. As if the whole kit and caboodle of ilegal pot dealers manipulating the law as hard as they could hadn’t been stiffing the taxpayers for years theselves.

“Aside from insisting that they are good people at heart, criminals are constantly on the verge of outrage, indignant because others fail to confirm their lofty opinions of themselves and do not meet their unrealistic expectations.” https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/inside-the-criminal-mind/202209/why-are-criminals-often-indignant

Legallettuce
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Guest

//No one in the world is more outraged than a criminal who runs into cops who are worse criminals.//

Well yea. They take the fun outta cops and robbers when it’s just robbers vs. robbers.

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Legallettuce

👍

Permanently on Monitoring
Guest
Permanently on Monitoring
1 year ago
Reply to  Legallettuce

Thank you.

Tim
Guest
Tim
1 year ago
Reply to  Guest

Your really manipulating the truth.
If a person runs a red light should they not given the same rights under the constitution?

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Tim

That was a huge leap from the point being made that criminals are in in a constant state of outrage to somehow that meaning that means criminals have no rights. It means pretty much the exact opposite. That ciminals, if they were not so exclusively focused on themselves, would not be so outraged over every slight to themselves because they would see that their own behavior is little different than the behavior of criminal policemen. Neither should lose their rights nor be allowed to escape the consequences of their bad behavior. It would be good if in thinking what the criminal police do is so outrageous, they should be automatically aware that their own behavior is equally bad. And the equally part of it is being generous to the non police criminal.

What a shocker that would be if criminals in general had less outrage applied against police and more outrage applied to themselves. Why actual law abiding might accidently happen as a result! Unlikely to ever happen but it might mean that at the least a bit of self deprecating humor might result. And maybe a touch more self awareness too.

Name*
Guest
Name*
1 year ago
Reply to  Guest

Producer.
Broker.
Highway robber.
This is a tough riddle. Which one is a criminal?

Legallettuce
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

I dunno why you think you don’t deserve a Peabody. Happy holidays to you and your loved ones.

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

Being convicted of a crime makes a person a criminal. What you probably mean is either Mr. Flatten has never been convicted of a crime or that your personal opinion is that pot growing and sales, even when clearly illegal, is not a crime.

Frankly, even if Mr. Flatton had never been convicted of a crime, it is sheer luck that he showed up to carry the flag. The only reason that these cops got away with such bad behavior for so long is that, until they picked on him, is that their victims were afraid to take action because they were engaging in criminal activity themselves. Condeming the cop meant condemning themselves.

And that is the point to be made. Criminal activity makes corrupt policemen possible. At least at the start. Never that it excuses the police. Which is where you confuse the issues. When that criminal virus is spreads, then sooner or later non criminals get dragged into the ever spreading corruption. About that you are right. But such police corruption can not exist in the first place if the environment of corruption did not already offer corrupt police safty? Why is that not a reason for being law abiding as a general principle?

It’s the self righteous condoning of illegal money making that made it all possible. It’s was never a matter of principle as you have often said in the past when illogically comparing pot laws to laws on racism or slavery. Pot growing was always about money. Making lots of it no matter what without paying taxes on the profits. Which is I suppose how so many of the illegal growers were surprised at the power that being taxed gives government. I did warn about that Most people who had legal businesses were already aware of this power. Pot growers weren’t.

Complaints on taxing were and still are routinely trivialized on this site prior to getting caught in it themselves. This “anti corruption” campaign is not a road-to-damascus conversion to sainthood. It is a vendetta. The harm of such condoning will be repeated until acknowledged. Immigration, partisan politics, gender issues, corporate evils, etc are all rendered irremedial by misplaced personification .

Ahuka of the Hashishim
Guest
Ahuka of the Hashishim
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

I have always seen the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 as a huge federal law enforcement agency practicing self-preservation after their existence was largely made unnecessary by the repeal of Prohibition in 1933. We can’t have Elliott Ness and friends become unemployed, so let’s create a new criminal class for them to chase after.

Guest
Guest
Guest
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

And you believe Humboldt Co became a hotbed for the search for racial justice by growing marijuana illegally ? Money had nothing to do with it? Just rebellion against racism…

Well that is a piece of rationalization not supported by the demographics of immigration from Mexico. Immigration spiked after the Mexican Revolution displaced people by the Mexican government confiscation land but the immigration, along with your immorally villainized marijuana, just kept going on until it suddenly went off a cliff in 1929. Long long before pot was was banned. And it only started climbing again about the 1950s. It went down before the banning and went up before the debanning.

Now what happened in 1929? Remember? A great depression! Jobs scare, no reason to immigrate? And it only started climbing again after WWII. Also long before the Marijuana was legalized. While marijuana may have been villainized based on ethnic prejudice (I don’t know and don’t believe you do either no matter what spin you put on it) it certainly did not correlate with rises or falls of immigration from Mexico. Apparently Qchan has nothing on pot mystics for conspracy theories.

R (1).jpeg
Name*
Guest
Name*
1 year ago
Reply to  Guest

Read “Devil in the Grove” by Gilbert King. That Sheriff prosecuting “crime” was in office until 1973. Outrageous when you read the story.
https://youtu.be/Wnw3PghTw5Y

Permanently on Monitoring
Guest
Permanently on Monitoring
1 year ago
Reply to  Guest

Thank you.

Mariahgirl
Guest
1 year ago

What happened to the CDFW that were involved in all of this?

Outside Looking In
Guest
Outside Looking In
1 year ago

Does anyone know how much prison time that Jacy Tatum guy was sentenced to serve? He pled guilty over a year ago, and he was scheduled to be sentenced in March, but then he fell off the journalistic radar and no one’s bothered to follow up on it.

Outside Looking In
Guest
Outside Looking In
1 year ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

Thank you Ms Kemp!
I think that’s another scoop. Great job on this whole thing.

burblestein
Guest
burblestein
1 year ago

A crooked cop is a traitor to his/her society. Very few pay the true price for their treachery.

El Barto
Guest
El Barto
1 year ago

Kevin Murphy is not in jail, which is also a huge crime

Another glass of koolaid?
Guest
Another glass of koolaid?
1 year ago

FTP. Hope he rots in there for the whole 90.

Prometheus
Guest
Prometheus
1 year ago

Give em the maximum sentence…

Kathleen Ann Marcotulli
Guest
Kathleen Ann Marcotulli
1 year ago

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 1 of 18
United States District Court
FOR THE
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
VENUE: SAN FRANCISCO UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
V.
JOSEPH HUFFAKER
CR 21-00374-MMC
FILED
Dec 13 2022
Mark B. Busby
CLERK, U.S. DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA SAN FRANCISCO
DEFENDANT(S).
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT
18 U.S.C. § 1951 – Conspiracy to Commit Extortion Under Color of Official Right; 18 U.S.C. § 1951 – Extortion Under Color of Official Right;
18 U.S.C. § 371 – Conspiracy to Falsify Records in a Federal Investigation; 18 U.S.C. § 1519 – Falsifying Records in a Federal Investigation;
18 U.S.C. § 371– Conspiracy to Impersonate a Federal Officer
18 U.S.C. § 912 – Impersonating a Federal Officer
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(d)(1), 981(a)(1)(C) and 28 U.S.C. § 2461(c) – Forfeiture; 18 U.S.C. § 2 – Aiding and Abetting
A true bill.
/s/ Foreperson of the Grand Jury
Filed in open court this _1_3_t_h______ day of _D__e_c_e_m__b_e_r_,_2_0__2_2_________________.
Foreman
____________________________________________ Brittany Sims, Clerk ____________________________________________
Bail, $ _N_o__P__ro__c_e_s_s__ Hon. Lisa J. Cisneros, Magistrate Judge

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
STEPHANIE M. HINDS (CABN 154284) United States Attorney
Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 2 of 18
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA SAN FRANCISCO DIVISION
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ) CASE NO.
Plaintiff, v.
JOSEPH HUFFAKER, Defendant.
)
) VIOLATIONS:
The Grand Jury charges:
CR-21-00374-MMC
18 U.S.C. § 371– Conspiracy to Falsify Records in a Federal Investigation;
18 U.S.C. § 1519 – Falsifying Records in a Federal Investigation;
SAN FRANCISCO VENUE SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT
) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )
18 U.S.C. § 1951 – Conspiracy to Commit Extortion Under Color of Official Right;
18 U.S.C. § 1951 –Extortion Under Color of Official Right;
Introductory Allegations At all times relevant to this Superseding Indictment:
1. The City of Rohnert Park was a city located in Sonoma County, California, in the Northern District of California. The Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety (“RPDPS”) was a
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT
FILED
Dec 13 2022
Mark B. Busby
CLERK, U.S. DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA SAN FRANCISCO
18 U.S.C. § 371– Conspiracy to Impersonate a Federal Officer
18 U.S.C. § 912 – Impersonating a Federal Officer 18 U.S.C. §§ 924(d)(1), 981(a)(1)(C) and 28 U.S.C. § 2461(c) – Forfeiture; 18 U.S.C. § 2 – Aiding and Abetting

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 3 of 18
1 department of the City of Rohnert Park. RPDPS consisted of a Police Services Patrol Division and Fire
2 Services Division.
3 2. Brendan Jacy Tatum (“Tatum”) was employed with RPDPS between 2003 and 2018.
4 Between July 2015 and August 20, 2017, and again after February 4, 2018, Tatum was a Public Safety
5 Sergeant in the Police Services Patrol Division. Between August 20, 2017 and February 4, 2018, Tatum
6 was assigned to the Fire Services Division.
7 3. JOSEPH HUFFAKER (“HUFFAKER”) was employed as an officer with RPDPS
8 between in or about 2012 and in or about 2019.
9 4. RPDPS had an “interdiction team,” which operated between at least in or about 2014
10 through in or about 2017. The RPDPS interdiction team conducted traffic stops on vehicles in an effort
11 to seize illegal drugs and its operations were in addition to the team members’ normal duties. As such,
12 the time spent on interdiction operations was considered overtime and interdiction team members were
13 required to notate their time sheets accordingly.
14 5. HUFFAKER and Tatum were members of the RPDPS interdiction team and participated
15 in the activities of the team at various times between 2015 and the end of 2016. In 2016, the team was
16 headed by Tatum. In 2016, in addition to being in charge of the RPDPS interdiction team, Tatum also
17 supervised RPDPS’s Asset Forfeiture. The RPDPS interdiction team did not operate in conjunction with
18 or in cooperation with any federal agencies, such as the United States Drug Enforcement Administration
19 or the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (“ATF”) in relation to drug interdiction.
20 6. The RPDPS interdiction team’s operations were subject to the same policies and
21 procedures in place for RPDPS in general, including policies and procedures relating to body camera
22 usage, property and evidence packaging and destruction, asset seizure and forfeiture, and report writing,
23 among others.
24 7. RPDPS reported that it began using body-worn cameras between 2015 and mid-2016.
25 Use of body-worn cameras and the policies and procedures that were in place applied to all of RPDPS,
26 including the interdiction team. Under those policies and procedures, body-worn cameras were required
27 to be worn and activated when officers came into contact with citizens in the performance of their
28 official duties. The body-worn camera was required to be activated and not be terminated until the
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 2

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 4 of 18
1 contact had entirely concluded. Where the body-worn camera was not activated or was terminated prior
2 to contact entirely concluding, the officer was required to document the reasons for doing so. All digital
3 media from body-worn cameras was required to be downloaded at the end of the officer’s shift and
4 securely stored.
5 8. Under RPDPS policies and procedures, all interdictions resulting in the seizure of
6 narcotics and or other property or evidence, including cash, were required to be submitted to
7 property/evidence and documented by an Evidence/Property Report and/or an Incident/Investigation
8 Report, whether the activity related to a felony or misdemeanor. In cases where a narcotics seizure was
9 made, but the subject disclaimed ownership of the narcotics, the seized narcotics nevertheless were
10 required to be submitted to property/evidence; in such instances, RPDPS records systems referred to the
11 narcotics “as found property.” RPDPS generated case numbers sequentially regardless of the type of
12 case. Those case numbers were used as a reference for other official documents, including
13 Evidence/Property Reports, Chain of Custody documents, Incident/Investigation Reports, and
14 Destruction Orders, among other things. Names associated with an Incident/Investigation Report were
15 input in the RPDPS computer system and the date and time and user that inputted that data was reflected
16 in the system. In addition, when a user was filling in the Incident/Investigation Report fields, such
17 information was captured in the system as “audit details,” which captured the name of the user inputting
18 the data and date and time of input into the fields.
19 9. RPDPS had an asset forfeiture manual and policy that officers were required to follow.
20 For seizures of cash, the Asset Forfeiture Manual required that the owner be provided with a notice of
21 forfeiture. All cash seized was required to be booked into evidence with a currency envelope, with a
22 total of the amount of cash, and a list of denominations. The currency was to be counted in the presence
23 of two officers who were required to sign to verify the amount prior to the money being booked into the
24 Evidence/Property room. A photocopy of the currency envelope was required to be attached to the
25 police report.
26 10. At all relevant times, the destruction of narcotics seized by RPDPS required a destruction
27 order signed by a judge in Sonoma County. Once ordered for destruction, the procedure in place was to
28 take the narcotics to an incinerator operated by Covanta Stanislaus, located in Crows Landing,
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 3

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 5 of 18
1 California. A property technician and a sworn officer would transport the items, provide Covanta with
2 an inventory of items to be incinerated, and witness the destruction. After destruction, Covanta provided
3 proof of destruction, and the chain of custody for the evidence/property was updated by RPDPS property
4 staff to include notes regarding the date and time of destruction. Alternate means of destruction was not
5 authorized.
6 11. The RPDPS interdiction team’s operations were terminated in approximately January
7 2017 and Tatum, HUFFAKER, and the other interdiction team officers were informed that the
8 interdiction team’s operations were terminated.
9 The Scheme and Conspiracy to Extort Under Color of Official Right
10 12. HUFFAKER and Tatum devised and executed a scheme to unlawfully extort under color
11 of official right property from individuals on which they conducted traffic stops on United States Route
12 101. As part of the scheme, during the existence of the interdiction team Tatum acted alone. After
13 termination of the interdiction team, in 2017, Tatum conspired with HUFFAKER to extort property
14 under color of official right, claiming to be ATF agents, threatening to arrest drivers if they contested
15 seizures of their property during these traffic stops, and then HUFFAKER and Tatum seized their
16 property, specifically marijuana, without reporting or checking the seized property into evidence, or
17 documenting or reporting the stop and seizure.
18 13. Specifically, in 2016, during the RPDPS interdiction team operations, Tatum, who at the
19 time was an RPDPS Sergeant and head of the interdiction team, devised a plan and scheme to extort
20 marijuana, and other property, under color of official right from numerous individuals he stopped with
21 other interdiction team officers. Tatum did so by demanding marijuana and other property from
22 individuals during traffic stops and, telling the property owners that he would let them go without an
23 arrest or other formal process for their marijuana possession if they did not challenge the seizure of their
24 property. Once he seized the property, Tatum would let them go without arresting or charging these
25 individuals, without providing a citation with a notation of the property seized or asset forfeiture notice
26 to the individuals, without filing an Incident/Investigation Report, without filing a Property/Evidence
27 Report, including Found Property, without submitting the marijuana and other property into the custody
28 of the property department, without submitting the necessary asset forfeiture documents to the City of
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 4

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 6 of 18
1 Rohnert Park, and without filing an application for a destruction order. For example, using the color of
2 official right, and the method set forth above:
3 a. On August 25, 2016, Tatum and another RPDPS officer from the interdiction
4 team (Officer 1), while on duty and on patrol, stopped Victim 1 (S.D.) on Highway 101
5 near Cloverdale, California and Tatum extorted approximately $3,700 in cash, as well as
6 roughly 14 pounds of marijuana;
7 b. On or about September 2, 2016, Tatum and Officer 1, while on duty and in a
8 police vehicle, stopped Victim 2 (T.M.) on Highway 101 near Cloverdale, California and
9 Tatum extorted approximately 15 pounds of marijuana;
10 c. On October 4, 2016, Tatum and Officer 2, while on duty and in a police vehicle
11 on patrol, stopped Victim 3 (J.D.) near Cloverdale and Tatum extorted approximately six
12 pounds of marijuana;
13 d. On or about October 5, 2016, Tatum and Officer 2, while on duty and in a police
14 vehicle on patrol, stopped Victim 4 (D.P.) near Cloverdale, California and Tatum
15 extorted approximately two-and-a-half pounds of marijuana;
16 e. On or about December 6, 2016, HUFFAKER and Tatum, while on duty and in a
17 police vehicle, stopped Victim 5 (J.K.) near Cloverdale and Tatum extorted
18 approximately 20 pounds of marijuana; and
19 f. On or about December 30, 2016, HUFFAKER and Tatum, while on duty and in a
20 police vehicle, stopped Victim 6 (M.E.) near Cloverdale and Tatum extorted
21 approximately 2 pounds of marijuana.
22 In each of these stops, at least one officer activated his body-worn camera.
23 14. Between at least on or about December 5, 2017 and December 18, 2017, HUFFAKER
24 and Tatum extorted significant quantities of marijuana from owners with consent that was induced
25 through color of official right, declaring to the owners that they would seize their property, and at times
26 threatening to arrest and charge the victims, while never in fact submitting the property to RPDPS or
27 documenting the stop or seizure. In these instances, the officers were not on duty, did not have body-
28
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 5

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
worn cameras, were not in uniform and wore no indicia that they were from RPDPS, claimed to be ATF agents, and did not use a marked RPDPS police vehicle.
COUNT ONE: (18 U.S.C. § 1951 – Conspiracy to Commit Extortion Under Color of Official Right)
15. The factual allegations in Paragraphs 1 through 14 are re-alleged and incorporated as if fully set forth herein.
16. Beginning at a date unknown, but by at least on or about December 5, 2017 and continuing to a date unknown, but to at least on or about December 18, 2017 in the Northern District of California and elsewhere, the defendant,
JOSEPH HUFFAKER,
with others known and unknown, including Tatum, did knowingly conspire to obstruct, delay, and affect
in any way and degree commerce and the movement of articles and commodities in commerce by extortion, as those terms are defined in Title 18, United States Code, section 1951; that is, defendant obtained property not due defendant or his office, from victims and others, with consent induced under color of official right.
The Conspiracy to Extort
17. After termination of the interdiction team’s operations, between at least on or about
December 5, 2017 and on or about December 18, 2017, HUFFAKER and Tatum, both while off-duty, and under color of official right, conspired to seize marijuana, and other property from numerous individuals they stopped, without arresting or charging these individuals, without providing a citation or asset forfeiture notice to the individuals, without filing an Incident/Investigation Report, without filing a Property/Evidence Report, without submitting the marijuana and other property into the custody of the property department, without submitting the necessary asset forfeiture documents to the City of Rohnert Park, and without filing an application for a destruction order.
The Manner and Means
18. The defendant and Tatum carried out their conspiracy to extort alleged herein in the
following manner and means, among others: SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 6
Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 7 of 18

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
a. Using their position as public officials to seize things of value from their victims with the intent to convert them to their own use;
b. Obtaining consent to seize things of value from their victims in exchange for official action or inaction, specifically not charging or arresting their victims;
c. Not following official policies and procedures, including by not documenting their vehicle stops in which they seized things of value from their victims;
d. Converting property seized when acting as public officials to their own use;
e. Taking steps to hide, conceal, and cover up their activities, including falsifying
police reports, and omitting references to these undocumented stops in reporting RPDPS interdiction team seizure statistics;
f. Falsely impersonating officers of an agency of the United States, such as the ATF; and
g. Concealing the seizures and their value, by selling the goods (namely marijuana) for cash and not reporting the amounts received.
Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 8 of 18
10
11
12
13
14
15
16 19.
17 others committed or caused to be committed the following overt acts, among others, in the Northern
18 District of California and elsewhere:
Overt Acts
In furtherance of the conspiracy, and to carry out its objects, HUFFAKER, Tatum, and
19 a. On or about December 5, 2017, HUFFAKER and another individual conducted a
20 traffic stop on Victim 7 (E.F.) in the Northern District of California (the “December 5,
21 2017 stop”);
22 b. During the December 5, 2017 stop of Victim 7 (E.F.), HUFFAKER falsely
23 claimed to be an ATF agent;
24 c. During the December 5, 2017 stop of Victim 7 (E.F.), Victim 7 did not consent to
25 the seizure of three pounds of marijuana that he possessed;
26 d. During the December 5, 2017, stop of Victim 7 (E.F.) HUFFAKER seized those
27 three pounds of marijuana while failing to provide a citation or any other documentation
28 related to the stop that would allow Victim 7 (E.F.) to contest the seizure;
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 7

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 9 of 18
1 e. On or about December 18, 2017, HUFFAKER and Tatum conducted a traffic stop
2 on Victim 8 (B.L.) in the Northern District of California (the “December 18, 2017 stop”);
3 f. During the December 18, 2017 stop of Victim 8 (B.L.), HUFFAKER and Tatum
4 falsely claimed to be ATF agents;
5 g. During the December 18, 2017 stop of Victim 8 (B.L.), HUFFAKER and Tatum
6 threatened to arrest Victim 8 if he did not consent to the seizure of at least 23 pounds of
7 marijuana that he possessed. Two California Highway Patrol (“CHP”) officers drove up
8 and observed part of the stop;
9 h. During the December 18, 2017 stop of Victim 8 (B.L.), HUFFACKER and Tatum
10 seized those 23 pounds of marijuana while failing to provide a citation or any other
11 documentation related to the stop that would allow Victim 8 (B.L.) to contest the seizure.
12 Neither Tatum nor HUFFAKER submitted any records reflecting the stop or the
13 marijuana seized;
14 i. Having been observed by two CHP officers during their stop on December 18,
15 2017, on or about December 19, 2017, HUFFAKER and Tatum submitted an
16 Evidence/Property Report that indicated two 15-pound boxes of marijuana were
17 submitted as “Found – for Destruction.” The Report indicated that this property was
18 collected by HUFFAKER on December 18, 2017. The 23 pounds of packaged and
19 labeled marijuana seized on December 18, 2017 was taken by the defendants and 30
20 pounds of loose marijuana was submitted as “found property”; and
21 j. Between December 5, 2017 and February 20, 2018, HUFFAKER and Tatum took
22 steps to hide, conceal, and cover up their activities, including by falsifying police reports.
23 All in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1951.
24 COUNT TWO: (18 U.S.C. §§ 1951 and 2 – Extortion Under Color of Official Right)
20. The factual allegations in Paragraphs 1 through 19 are re-alleged and incorporated as if fully set forth herein.
21. On or about December 5, 2017, in the Northern District of California and elsewhere, the defendant,
25 26 27 28
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 8

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
JOSEPH HUFFAKER
did knowingly obstruct, delay, and affect in any way and degree commerce and the movement of articles
and commodities in commerce by extortion, as those terms are defined in Title 18, United States Code, Section 1951; that is, defendant obtained property not due defendant or his office, from Victim 7 (E.F.), with consent induced under color of official right.
All in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1951 and 2.
COUNT THREE: (18 U.S.C. §§ 1951 and 2 – Extortion Under Color of Official Right)
22. The factual allegations in Paragraphs 1 through 21 are re-alleged and incorporated as if fully set forth herein.
23. On or about December 18, 2017, in the Northern District of California and elsewhere, the defendant,
JOSEPH HUFFAKER,
did knowingly obstruct, delay, and affect in any way and degree commerce and the movement of articles
and commodities in commerce by extortion, as those terms are defined in Title 18, United States Code, Section 1951; that is, defendant obtained property not due defendants or his office, from Victim 8 (B.L.) and others, with consent induced under color of official right.
All in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1951 and 2.
COUNT FOUR: (18 U.S.C. § 371 – Conspiracy to Falsify Records in a Federal Investigation)
24. The factual allegations in Paragraphs 1 through 23 are re-alleged and incorporated as if fully set forth herein.
25. Beginning at a date unknown, but by at least on or about February 13, 2018, and continuing to a date unknown, but to at least on or about February 20, 2018, in the Northern District of California and elsewhere, the defendant,
JOSEPH HUFFAKER,
and others, including Tatum, did knowingly and unlawfully combine, conspire, and agree to
conceal, cover up, falsify, and make false entries in Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety reports with the intent to impede, obstruct, and influence the investigation and proper administration of matters within the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of
Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 10 of 18
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 9

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 11 of 18
1 Investigation, and in relation to and contemplation of such matters, in violation of Title 18, United States
2 Code, Section 1519.
3 Overt Acts
4 26. In furtherance of the conspiracy, and to carry out its objects, Tatum, HUFFAKER, and
5 others committed or caused to be committed the following overt acts, among others, in the Northern
6 District of California and elsewhere:
7 a. After the publication on February 11, 2018, of two articles about the events
8 related to the seizure of marijuana from Victim 7 (E.F.) entitled, “Outraged: One Man’s
9 Two Month Quest from the FBI to the ATF to Expose What He Says Are Corrupt Police
10 Officers in Mendocino” and “Former Undercover Officer Involved in Developing
11 Cannabis Products Accuses Hopland Tribal Police Chief of Theft, Corruption, and Civil
12 Rights Violations,” which reported that Victim 7 (E.F.) stated that he had been robbed of
13 three pounds of marijuana by two unidentified officers without uniforms and believed it
14 may have been the Hopland Tribal Police or the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, and
15 which also indicated that Victim 7 (E.F.) had been contacted by the FBI and that the ATF
16 began an investigation into the matter, and after receiving a complaint by the Mendocino
17 County Sheriff’s office, Tatum, in the presence of HUFFAKER, contacted his and
18 HUFFAKER’S supervisor to get approval to issue a press release to explain that the stop
19 was done by RPDPS;
20 b. On or about February 13, 2018, HUFFAKER sent Tatum an email, which
21 included a draft press release about the above referenced traffic stop on December 5,
22 2017, and which draft press release included facts associated with the December 18, 2017
23 traffic stop;
24 c. On or about February 13, 2018, Tatum completed and issued the press release
25 which stated that RPDPS that made the December 5, 2017 stop and used facts associated
26 with the December 18, 2017 stop;
27 28
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 10

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 12 of 18
1 d. On or about February 14, 2018, Tatum received a call from an FBI agent, asking
2 about the December 5, 2017 stop. The agent asked for the police report and the press
3 release;
4 f. On or about February 15, 2018, HUFFAKER and Tatum had a number of calls
5 about preparing a false incident report for the December 5, 2017 stop and seizure from
6 Victim 7 (E.F.);
7 g. On or about February 15, 2018, HUFFAKER sent Tatum an email at Tatum’s
8 personal email account containing a draft of the facts for a false incident report of the
9 December 5, 2017 stop which used the facts associated with the December 18, 2017 stop;
10 h. On or about February 20, 2018, Tatum forwarded the email that HUFFAKER sent
11 to Tatum’s personal account on February 15, 2018 to Tatum’s work email account.
12 i. On or about February 20, 2018, Tatum, using the false draft facts from
13 HUFFAKER, falsified an Incident/Investigation Report regarding Victim 7’s (E.F.)
14 traffic stop and seizure on December 5, 2017, using an existing case number generated on
15 December 19, 2017 relating to the December 18, 2017 stop and seizure from Victim 8
16 (B.L.), and identifying Victim 7 (E.F.) in the “offender” section of the report;
17 j. On February 20, 2018, shortly after having falsified an Incident/Investigation
18 Report for the December 5, 2017 stop of Victim 7 (E.F.) with HUFFAKER’s assistance,
19 Tatum forwarded the falsified Incident/Investigation Report, along with a copy of the
20 press release from February 13, 2018, to the FBI agent by e-mail.
21 All in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371.
22 COUNT FIVE: (18 U.S.C. §§ 1519 and 2 – Falsifying Records in a Federal Investigation)
23 27. The factual allegations in Paragraphs 1 through 26 are re-alleged and incorporated as if
24 fully set forth herein.
25 28. Between on or about February 13 and 20, 2018, in the Northern District of California,
26 and elsewhere, the defendant,
27 JOSEPH HUFFAKER,
28
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 11

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
knowingly concealed, covered up, falsified, and made false entries in Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety reports with the intent to impede, obstruct, and influence the investigation and proper administration of matters within the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and in relation to and contemplation of such matters, to wit, the defendant used a case number and property report created on December 19, 2017 to make a false police report relating to an undocumented RPDPS vehicle stop and seizure on December 5, 2017, which was reported in the press on February 11, 2018.
COUNT SIX: (18 U.S.C. § 371 – Conspiracy to Impersonate a Federal Officer)
29. The factual allegations in Paragraphs 1 through 28 are re-alleged and incorporated as if
fully set forth herein.
30. Beginning at a date unknown, but by at least on or about December 5, 2017, and
continuing to a date unknown, but to at least on or about December 18, 2017, in the Northern District of California and elsewhere, the defendant,
JOSEPH HUFFAKER,
and others known and unknown, including Tatum, did knowingly and unlawfully combine, conspire
and agree to commit impersonation of a federal officer and
Overt Acts
31. In furtherance of the conspiracy, and to carry out its objects, Tatum, HUFFAKER, and
thers committed or caused to be committed the following overt acts, among others, in the Northern istrict of California and elsewhere:
a. HUFFAKER and Tatum agreed that as part of the scheme to extort marijuana from victims, they would tell the victims that they were ATF.
b. On or about December 5, 2017, HUFFAKER and another individual conducted a traffic stop on Victim 7 (E.F.) in the Northern District of California;
c. During the December 5, 2017 stop of Victim 7 (E.F.), HUFFAKER falsely claimed to be an ATF agent;
Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 13 of 18
to wit, marijuana, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 912.
UPERSEDING INDICTMENT 12
in such pretended character a thing of value,
o D
S

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 14 of 18
1 d. During the December 5, 2017 stop of Victim 7 (E.F.), Victim 7 (E.F.) did not
2 consent to the seizure of three pounds of marijuana that he possessed;
3 e. During the December 5, 2017 stop of Victim 7 (E.F.), HUFFAKER seized those
4 three pounds of marijuana while failing to provide a citation or any other documentation
5 related to the stop that would allow Victim 7 (E.F.) to contest the seizure;
6 f. On or about December 18, 2017, HUFFAKER and Tatum conducted a traffic stop
7 on Victim 8 (B.L.) in the Northern District of California;
8 g. During the December 18, 2017 stop of Victim 8 (B.L.), HUFFAKER and Tatum
9 falsely claimed to be ATF agents;
10 h. During the December 18, 2017 stop of Victim 8 (B.L.), HUFFAKER and Tatum
11 threatened to arrest Victim 8 if he did not consent to the seizure of at least 23 pounds of
12 marijuana that he possessed. Two California Highway Patrol (“CHP”) officers drove up
13 and observed part of the stop;
14 i. During the December 18, 2017 stop of Victim 8 (B.L.), HUFFACKER and Tatum
15 seized those 23 pounds of marijuana while failing to provide a citation or any other
16 documentation related to the stop that would allow Victim 8 (B.L.) to contest the seizure.
17 All in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 371.
18 COUNT SEVEN: (18 U.S.C. § 912 and 2 – Impersonating a Federal Officer)
19 32. The factual allegations in Paragraphs 1 through 31 are re-alleged and incorporated as if
20 fully set forth herein.
21 33. On or about December 18, 2017, in the Northern District of California and elsewhere, the
22 defendant,
23
24 in the falsely presumed and pretended capacity of an officer and employee of the United States and
25 acting under the authority thereof, that is an ATF officer, did demand a thing of value, in that he
26 demanded marijuana and threatened to arrest Victim 8 (B.L.) if he did not consent to the seizure.
27 All in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 912.
28 //
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 13
JOSEPH HUFFAKER,

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 15 of 18
1 FORFEITURE ALLEGATION: (18 U.S.C. §§ 924(d)(1), 981(a)(1)(C) and 28 U.S.C. § 2461(c))
2 34. The allegations contained Paragraphs 1 through 25 of this Superseding Indictment are re-
3 alleged and by this reference fully incorporated herein for the purpose of alleging forfeiture pursuant to
4 the provisions of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 924(d)(1), 981(a)(1)(C) and Title 28, United
5 States Code, Section 2461(c).
6 35. Upon conviction for the offenses alleged in Counts One, Two, and Three of this
7 Superseding Indictment, the defendant,
8 JOSEPH HUFFAKER,
9 shall forfeit to the United States pursuant to 18 U.S.C. §§ 924(d)(1), 981(a)(1)(C) and 28 U.S.C.
10 § 2461(c) any firearm or ammunition involved in or used in that violation, and all property, real or
11 personal, constituting or derived from proceeds the defendant obtained, directly and indirectly, as the
12 result of that violation, including, but not limited to, the following:
13
14
15
16 36. 17
a. Money Judgment: a sum of money equal to the total gross proceeds obtained as a result of the offense; and
b. any firearm or ammunition involved in or used in that violation.
If any of the property described above, as a result of any act or omission of the defendant: a. cannot be located upon the exercise of due diligence;
b. has been transferred, or sold to, or deposited with, a third party;
c. has been placed beyond the jurisdiction of the court;
d. has been substantially diminished in value; or
e. has been commingled with other property that cannot be divided without difficulty,
18 19 20 21 22
23 any and all interest the defendant has in other property shall be vested in the United States and forfeited
24 to the United States pursuant to Title 21, United States Code, Section 853(p), as incorporated by Title
25 18, United States Code, Section 982(b)(1).
26 //
27 //
28 //
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT 14

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
All pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, Sections 924(d)(1), 981(a)(1)(C), Title 28, United States Code, Section 2461(c), and Rule 32.2 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.
Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 16 of 18
DATED: 12/13/2022
STEPHANIE M. HINDS United States Attorney
/s/ Cynthia Frey _____________________________ CYNTHIA FREY
Assistant United States Attorney
A TRUE BILL. /s/
_________________________ FOREPERSON
SUPERSEDING INDICTMENT
15

AO 257 (Rev. 6/78)
Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 17 of 18
BY: COMPLAINT INFORMATION
OFFENSE CHARGED
INDICTMENT SUPERSEDING
Name of District Court, and/or Judge/MagistrateLocation
Hon. Lisa J. Cisneros, Magistrate Judge
SAN FRANCISCO DIVISION
DEFENDANT – U.S
DISTRICT COURT NUMBER
CR 21-0374 MMC
DEFENDANT IS NOT IN CUSTODY
Has not been arrested, pending outcome this proceeding.
DEFENDANT INFORMATION RELATIVE TO A CRIMINAL ACTION – IN U.S. DISTRICT COURT
18 U.S.C. § 1951 – Conspiracy to Commit Extortion Under Color of Official Right;
18 U.S.C. § 1951 – Extortion Under Color of Official Right;
18 U.S.C. § 371 – Conspiracy to Falsify Records in a Federal Investigation; 18 U.S.C. § 1519 – Falsifying Records in a Federal Investigation;
18 U.S.C. § 371– Conspiracy to Impersonate a Federal Officer
18 U.S.C. § 912 – Impersonating a Federal Officer
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(d)(1), 981(a)(1)(C) and 28 U.S.C. § 2461(c) – Forfeiture; 18 U.S.C. § 2 – Aiding and Abetting
Petty
Minor
Misde- meanor
Felony
PENALTY:
Please see attachment

JOSEPH HUFFAKER
PROCEEDING
Name of Complaintant Agency, or Person (& Title, if any)
FBIandIRS
person is awaiting trial in another Federal or State Court, give name of court
this person/proceeding is transferred from another district per (circle one) FRCrp 20, 21, or 40. Show District
1)
2) 3)
4) 5) 6)
If not detained give date any prior summonswasservedonabovecharges 
Is a Fugitive
Is on Bail or Release from (show District)
IS IN CUSTODY
On this charge
this is a reprosecution of charges previously dismissed which were dismissed on motion of:
} } DOCKET NO.
U.S. ATTORNEY
DEFENSE
SHOW
CR 21-0374 MMC
} MAGISTRATE CASE NO.
3-21-70422 MAG
Awaiting trial on other charges
this prosecution relates to a pending case involving this same defendant
prior proceedings or appearance(s) before U.S. Magistrate regarding this defendant were recorded under
Yes } No
On another conviction
Federal
If answer to (6) is “Yes”, show name of institution
State
If “Yes” give date filed
Month/Day/Year Or… if Arresting Agency & Warrant were not
Has detainer been filed?
DATE OF  ARREST
Month/Day/Year This report amends AO 257 previously submitted
Name and Office of Person Furnishing Information on this form
Stephanie M. Hinds
DATE TRANSFERRED TO U.S. CUSTODY

Name of Assistant U.S. Attorney (if assigned)
PROCESS: SUMMONS
U.S. Attorney Other U.S. Agency
Cynthia Frey, AUSA
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR COMMENTS
NO PROCESS* If Summons, complete following:
WARRANT
Bail Amount:
Arraignment Defendant Address:
Initial Appearance
* Where defendant previously apprehended on complaint, no new summons or warrant needed, since Magistrate has scheduled arraignment
Date/Time: Before Judge:
Comments:

Count 1:
Counts 2-3: Count 4: Count 5: Count 6: Count 7: Forfeiture:
PENALTY SHEET ATTACHMENT JOSEPH HUFFAKER
18 U.S.C. § 1951 – Conspiracy to Commit Extortion Under Color of Official Right
Maximum Penalties: (1) 20 years imprisonment; (2) Maximum of 3 years of supervised release; (3) $250,000 fine; (4) $100 Special Assessment
18 U.S.C. § 1951 – Extortion Under Color of Official Right
Maximum Penalties: (1) 20 years imprisonment; (2) Maximum of 3 years of supervised release; (3) $250,000 fine; (4) $100 Special Assessment
18 U.S.C. § 371 – Conspiracy to Falsify Records in a Federal Investigation Maximum Penalties: (1) 5 years imprisonment; (2) Maximum of 3 years of supervised release; (3) $250,000 fine; (4) $100 Special Assessment
18 U.S.C. § 1519 – Falsifying Records in a Federal Investigation
Maximum Penalties: (1) 20 years imprisonment; (2) Maximum of 3 years of supervised release; (3) $250,000 fine; (4) $100 Special Assessment
18 U.S.C. § 371 – Conspiracy to Impersonate a Federal Officer
Maximum Penalties: (1) 5 years imprisonment; (2) Maximum of 3 years of supervised release; (3) $250,000 fine; (4) $100 Special Assessment
18 U.S.C. § 912 – Impersonating a Federal Officer
Maximum Penalties: (1) 3 years imprisonment; (2) Maximum of 1 year of supervised release; (3) $250,000 fine; (4) $100 Special Assessment
18 U.S.C. §§ 924(d)(1), 981(a)(1)(C) and 28 U.S.C. § 2461(c)
Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108 Filed 12/13/22 Page 18 of 18

Case 3:21-cr-00374-MMC Document 108-1 Filed 12/13/22 Page 1 of 1
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
CRIMINAL COVER SHEET
Instructions: Effective November 1, 2016, this Criminal Cover Sheet must be completed and submitted, along with the Defendant Information Form, for each new criminal case.
CASE NAME:
USA V. JOSEPH HUFFAKER
Is This Case Under Seal?
Total Number of Defendants:
Venue (Per Crim. L.R. 18-1):
Is this a potential high-cost case?
Is any defendant charged with a death-penalty-eligible crime?
CASE NUMBER:
CR CR 21-0374 MMC
Yes No ✔ 1 ✔ 2-7
8 or more
Does this case involve ONLY charges under 8 U.S.C. § 1325 and/or 1326?
Yes No✔
SF ✔ OAK SJ Yes No ✔
Yes No✔
Is this a RICO Act gang case? Yes
Assigned AUSA Cynthia Frey, AUSA (Lead Attorney):
No ✔
Date Submitted:
12-13-22
Comments:
Form CAND-CRIM-COVER (Rev. 11/16)
RESET FORM
SAVE PDF

Thanks for proving our point!D
Member
Thanks for proving our point!
1 year ago

Love a great legal doc mic drop!!!👏👏✊