By Robert Patrick
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
04/17/2009

A third St. Louis police officer has been indicted on a federal charge and accused of stealing more than $5,000 in police funds last year, court documents made public Friday show.

Leo Liston was indicted Friday on a charge of misapplication of government funds. The department said that Liston resigned Monday “under charges.” He was notified earlier this month that he was being placed on administrative duty, police spokeswoman Erica Van Ross said.
Liston could not immediately be reached for comment.


The accusations against Liston are contained in a superseding indictment filed Thursday in the case of Bobby Lee Garrett and Vincent T. Carr, who were indicted in December and accused of planting evidence, stealing money and dealing drugs.

The indictment says only that Liston, Garrett and "others" stole more than $5,000 on June 11, 2008.

Garrett has pleaded not guilty. Carr has resigned and pleaded guilty in February. He admitted that he and Garrett split $28,000 that they had taken from a second-floor resident of a two-family home in the 1400 block of Arlington Avenue on June 6, 2008.

Carr also accused Garrett of planting drugs, a gun and money in the apartment of the first-floor resident. He also said that they let the second-floor resident go so he would not report the theft and arrested the building owner, who did not live there.

The officers lied on court documents, lied to the FBI and destroyed their notes, Carr said.


The charges against Garrett and Carr triggered a review of over 1,000 state and federal criminal cases in which they were involved, and Liston's indictment is likely to bring more cases under scrutiny