Former Cook Co. Police Officer Pleads Guilty to Robbing Drug Dealers of Cocaine, Marijuana

A former police officer with the Cook County Sheriff’s Office pleaded guilty Wednesday in federal court to robbing drug dealers of cocaine, marijuana and contraband cigarettes during home invasions and while on duty, prosecutors said.

Robert Vaughan, 44, of Frankfort, pleaded guilty to one count of robbery as part of a plea agreement reached Wednesday. He admitted to robbing eight drug dealers between 2011 and 2013, earning a total profit of $300,000, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The robberies took place in Chicago, Cicero, Plainfield, Lyons, Melrose Park and Forest Park. Vaughan, a member of an anti-drug team, said he conducted the robberies with two other law enforcement officers and the three shared the profits, according to the news release.

According to the plea agreement, Vaughan was assigned to the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) team, a joint federal, state, and local initiative to combat the trafficking of illegal narcotics. Vaughan admitted using his position as a police officer to orchestrate deals with drug traffickers for marijuana, cocaine and contraband cigarettes. Immediately after the transactions, Vaughan would arrest and handcuff the individuals – but then keep the narcotics for himself and release the dealers without charges. Vaughan later sold the narcotics to other dealers in exchange for cash.

Vaughan also robbed individuals and homes of marijuana based on information he learned from confidential informants, according to the news release.

He was arrested on Nov. 3, 2014, after he and another law enforcement officers robbed 70 pounds of marijuana from an individual who he believed was a drug courier but was in fact an undercover federal agent, according to the plea agreement.

Vaughan’s partner on the anti-drug team, Stanley Kogut, was also arrested and committed suicide by hanging himself in a cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Chicago.

The Chicago Tribune identified a third law enforcement officer involved in the robberies as Jimmy Rodgers, a former Lyons police officer, “who was convicted last year of similar charges and was sentenced to five years in federal prison.”

Vaughan faces up to 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or gross loss resulting from the offense, according to the news release.