The FBI is investigating the August 2008 raid on the Wickliffe home of former Lorain Police Officer Joseph Montelon, according to a letter sent to U.S. Rep. Steve LaTourette from Assistant U.S. Attorney General Thomas Perez.
The letter, forwarded to Montelon by LaTourette, said that the investigation was spurred by a complaint filed by Montelon over the raid, which was designed to find evidence the convicted sex offender was responsible for a string of anonymous letter blasting the Lorain Police Department and Lorain Police Chief Cel Rivera.
“We have asked the Federal Bureau of Investigation to gather additional information regarding the circumstances of Mr. Montelon’s complaint,” Perez wrote in his letter, which was sent last month.
Montelon’s attorney, Terry Gilbert, released the letter to the media today.
According to an affidavit used to obtain the warrant, police considered the letters threatening. Lorain police, who were joined in the raid by Wickliffe police, the FBI and then-Lorain County Sheriff’s Capt. Rich Resendez, were also searching for evidence on who was supplying Montelon with internal information about the Lorain Police Department.
The investigation into Montelon has been reviewed by federal prosecutors and the Ohio Attorney General’s Office without charges being filed. The Lake County Prosecutor’s Office is now conducting its own review to determine if charges should be filed against Montelon.
Montelon has also sued Rivera and the city of Lorain in federal court over the raid. Rivera has filed a counterclaim against Montelon accusing him of defamation.
Gilbert said the review of the raid appears to be separate from the investigation the U.S. Department of Justice is conducting into allegations of excessive force by members of the Lorain Police Department. That investigation, launched in November 2008, is considered a civil probe.
Although the Justice Department hasn’t said what prompted the civil investigation of the Lorain Police Department, it’s widely believed it was sparked by complaints forwarded to Washington by Lorain City Council members Anne Molnar and Mitch Fallis.
Read Thursday’s Chronicle for more on this story.
Letters from Rep. Steve LaTourette and Assistant U.S. Attorney General Thomas Perez:
