0:01

From the Center for Investigative Reporting

0:04

and PRX, this is Reveal. I'm

0:06

Al Ledson. It's

0:08

February 2010 at the

0:10

Philadelphia Police Headquarters, and

0:13

21-year-old Malik Wagner is in a

0:15

room in the homicide unit. He's

0:17

being questioned about a fatal shooting that

0:19

happened that night. Before

0:22

I go on, I want to let you

0:24

know that this hour contains material that may

0:26

not be appropriate for some listeners. Not

0:31

far from where Malik lived, a

0:34

29-year-old named Brahim King had been

0:36

shot 11 times. Malik

0:38

says he was buying weed a few blocks

0:41

away when he was picked up by police.

0:43

I didn't try to run. I didn't do anything. I

0:46

put my hands up. I didn't have any weapons or

0:48

anything. So how can I be involved in this case?

0:50

That's what I'm trying to figure out. When

0:52

Malik left his house, he says he expected to

0:54

be gone for just a few minutes. But

0:57

he ended up spending three days in

1:00

the homicide unit, mostly sitting

1:02

across from a detective named Philip

1:04

Nordo. He's like short

1:06

and a little chubby. Like,

1:09

if I had to guess, I think he

1:11

Italian because of the way he carries, so

1:13

he like talk real slick

1:15

and he reminded me of Joe Pesci.

1:19

But first, Nordo is talking

1:21

about the shooting and says he

1:23

knows Malik has information. Like he

1:25

kept saying, like, I

1:28

know about you. I knew

1:30

you had something to do with this case. And

1:33

then, as Malik tells it, the detective

1:35

takes the conversation in

1:37

a bizarre direction. Sounds like

1:40

that's not his real job. He

1:43

has a porn ring out in

1:45

New Jersey. A

1:47

porn ring? This

1:49

detective was bringing up porn? My

2:00

guy or gal stuff like that.

2:03

Would have like in a sneaky way

2:05

likely which traumas the right sneaky about

2:07

his life sister just to see what

2:09

I would say. Melissa's.

2:13

It was just him in this

2:15

detective in a small room with

2:17

door closed. I was uncomfortable because

2:19

I didn't expect anything like that.

2:24

Are felt like. Hours

2:26

at a disadvantage. Anything

2:30

in this url. He

2:34

would get away with. Nord.

2:38

Who was considered highly effective

2:40

homicide detectives in the Philadelphia

2:43

Police Department. He. Had a

2:45

hand in convicting more than one hundred

2:47

people and was allowed to work with

2:49

little supervision. He thrived under the pressure

2:52

to close cases. But. Asthma

2:54

League experience first hand. Noodles.

2:56

Detective work was also. Suspect.

3:00

Chris. Palmer and Smear some alarm

3:02

Id or reporters for the

3:04

Philadelphia Inquirer. Lehman following orders

3:06

career for years. We.

3:09

Teamed up with them for this story we

3:11

first aired Back and Twenty Twenty Two to

3:13

look into who Nord or is who we

3:15

heard and how he got away with it

3:18

for so long. Samantha spent

3:20

months talking to believe she starts

3:22

to story at least childhood home

3:24

was going to meet his grandmother.

3:29

Lisa Wagner Rogers race No leaks starting

3:31

from when he was nine years old.

3:34

She. Remembers visiting his squad.

3:37

For. She learned that Moink was always

3:39

disappearing under his desk. Where. He'd

3:41

play with little paper soldier. S. C.

3:44

Last about outlets his teacher. Who.

3:46

Are it turned out was an old

3:48

friends. The past is wasted. I. Grew

3:50

up with she was his seat

3:52

you issue looks at me alexander

3:54

and we had last thing she

3:56

let me i'm I'm a slight

3:58

gradually siggraph. Liar. Liar.

4:02

The via of our first year.

4:05

Wow. Severe. She. Simply, he's B

4:07

C B a child. She's.

4:09

A he's as and give me any trouble at all

4:11

but i saw understand why he was to was like

4:14

they're. Looking. Back moink

4:16

says he was struggling. To cope. When.

4:18

He was three moink was hit by. A car.

4:21

And. Doctors had to his metal plates to

4:23

repair his skull. He. Suffer

4:25

from migraines ever since. His

4:28

father was upset. When. He was

4:30

nine. his mother died. And

4:32

he has three siblings were scattered

4:34

to different households. It

4:36

was Lisa who took him in. One.

4:39

Hour genre like bar. Or.

4:44

File off our our girl like

4:47

the hours for an everything for

4:49

heck of. A

4:53

white male I already didn't have

4:55

com the think about what our

4:57

one do love our starter marriages

4:59

are you know like. When.

5:02

He was a teenager he started

5:04

self medicating with marijuana of the

5:06

Lads and Sauce or us. Cbn.

5:09

Skipping school and when some home to

5:11

his grandmother's house for days on end.

5:14

He'll and one ways and

5:17

he'll hide different things like

5:19

this for his his feelings,

5:22

You know he always make sure is

5:25

still as a cheerful leaves her. Trust

5:28

me. Melissa. Also had

5:30

multiple run in the Philadelphia Phillies

5:32

that has only convection at that

5:35

point was a d when he

5:37

was twenty. That he says he

5:39

was picked up and number of times for cases

5:41

he had nothing to do with. Your

5:44

everything recharge. It was

5:47

supply air or years

5:50

just. Because. Of

5:52

Pennsylvania's laws around record ceiling I

5:54

wasn't able to verify. Any information

5:56

about these are us. When

5:59

the Lakers thought and. Questioning about the killing

6:01

of Brahim King, he says he figured

6:03

it was more of the same police

6:05

harassment. And why every girl

6:07

same situation? After the

6:10

three days of class names nor

6:12

know eventually let mulling doubt. That.

6:14

He was sake and. He. Was

6:17

already on probation for that deal. I.

6:19

And. He didn't want to end up in. Jail or

6:21

never been in a waste product or

6:23

what do? I didn't have a lot

6:26

of people mock cornerback them. Moink.

6:28

Decided to leave town. he save with a

6:30

girlfriend who lived about a hundred miles north

6:33

of the city. As the

6:35

months later he was arrested for the murder of

6:37

for him chang and brought back to sell it

6:39

althea. Movie these new by the.

6:42

Hills Mahfouz blood prices

6:44

of. The. Head behave

6:47

of the people involved in this. The

6:49

Zoo There was this. not even weeks here to.

6:51

In a movie like that. That was nice

6:54

his care to. Hear

6:56

was the prosecution's theory of the

6:59

case. they semele was a drug

7:01

dealer and on Abraham was killed

7:03

beliefs as as one of his

7:05

associates a guy named Calvin Bryant.

7:08

They were hanging out a Calvin's

7:10

mom's apartment. Prosecutors.

7:13

Said a third man. I mean

7:15

team was there to hit ceiling

7:17

bags of drugs. Or

7:19

calvin. Emily stepped outside.

7:22

I mean tell police say he went

7:24

out front and time to see Mulliken

7:27

Calvin superhero. Now. Here's

7:29

where it gets complicated and. Prosecutors.

7:32

Said that assert alleged drug dealer

7:34

had helps plan the murder and

7:36

that he and Calvin had killed

7:38

another man earlier that same. Prosecutors

7:41

said both killings. Are over

7:43

drugged her. They

7:45

merciful leaks case with the murder

7:47

cases against the to other man.

7:50

Meaning all three will be tried to

7:52

gather. The. Jury would hear

7:54

evidence of both murders at the same

7:56

time. Mirage.

8:00

I'm so confused

8:02

about the whole situation that I, it

8:05

just seems like we're gonna put

8:08

y'all all together and make it seem like y'all

8:10

gang that y'all can get

8:12

convicted. Malik

8:14

says he and his co-defendants were complete

8:17

strangers. And I reached

8:19

out to both of them. They all told

8:21

me the same thing. They met for

8:23

the first time in jail. The

8:26

key evidence against Malik came from two

8:28

witness statements taken by

8:30

Nordo. At the

8:32

trial, both witnesses recanted. The

8:35

first witness was Kelvin's stepfather. He

8:38

said he was high on crack when detectives

8:40

detained him overnight. He

8:43

said he had never met Malik. That

8:45

his entire statement placing Malik at

8:47

his home that night was a lie, fabricated

8:50

under police pressure. The

8:56

other witness was a mean pain. The

8:58

man who said he'd been at the apartment packing

9:00

drugs and saw Brahim's murder.

9:03

In court, he said that statement was

9:06

false, that he was the

9:08

one who killed Brahim. On

9:11

the stand, he said, quote, when

9:13

you said these gentlemen did it, I

9:16

told you that I did it. You

9:18

don't wanna listen. I

9:20

told y'all about the shootings, the

9:22

murders that I committed, and

9:24

you wanna sit here and blame these people. For

9:27

what? I don't know. I

9:35

spoke with Kelvin's stepfather and mother. They

9:38

reiterated that they didn't know Malik and

9:40

that he wasn't at their apartment that

9:42

night. Kelvin's mother

9:44

said she witnessed the shooting and

9:47

she said that Amin was the killer. Amin

9:50

declined my request for an interview.

9:52

In court, Malik felt a sense of dread, waiting.

10:00

for the jury to return the verdict.

10:03

I don't know if I told you this, but I

10:05

had the hiccups. And I haven't had

10:07

the hiccups in like a long time.

10:09

So I was like, something's not

10:11

right. And I woke up with the hiccups. And

10:15

that seemed like a bad omen. Yeah.

10:19

And while I was in the courtroom, I was just like, yeah,

10:21

yeah. Like,

10:25

I knew something's wrong. Despite

10:29

the conflicting statements and

10:31

one witness testifying that he was the real

10:33

killer, the jury believed the

10:36

version of events offered by the prosecution.

10:39

They found Malik and his co-defendants

10:41

guilty. All three

10:43

men were sentenced to life in prison

10:45

without parole. Malik

10:53

has been incarcerated more than a third of

10:55

his life. His grandmother,

10:58

Lisa, remains convinced of his

11:00

innocence. I'm going to

11:02

stick to what I said. My grandson did

11:04

not shoot anybody, nor

11:06

did he hurt anybody. I don't

11:09

believe it. And I'm never going to believe it. And

11:11

I'm going to tell you, God's going to

11:13

get my grandson through this because I pray

11:15

all the time that he looks never back

11:17

that way. So that's

11:20

the bottom line of that one. Malik

11:23

says he's spent years mulling it all

11:25

over, especially that bizarre conversation when he

11:27

says Nordo asked him if he would

11:29

do porn. Some days, I

11:32

would walk like, door and

11:34

yard by myself, just to think about

11:37

everything that's going on. Yeah,

11:39

I used to try to analyze the situation, try

11:42

to figure out what could

11:44

have happened. I

11:46

just tried to put everything together. Malik

11:50

says he came to believe that whatever

11:52

Nordo was up to, he

11:54

wasn't the only one the detective had targeted.

11:57

I think that he was just using. A

12:01

position is the lights are a

12:03

certain type of the food as

12:05

he is interested in like there's

12:07

no way I was only first

12:09

and let this happen to. Police

12:15

didn't since he was the only one

12:18

the normal and propositions. Still, he couldn't

12:20

prove it. Would use

12:22

later. Someone else was looking for proof

12:25

Sides: get the discuss: Stick it in

12:27

my computer and like once I got

12:29

a minute, let me listen to a

12:32

couple of these that's coming up next.

12:34

reveal. What's

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the one thing most history of

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the melanin department. Wonder if new

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podcast Last History for Real introduces

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you to the most overlooked black

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an Apple Podcasts. From.

13:27

The Center For Investigative Reporting M

13:30

P R X This is revealed

13:32

Analysis. As

13:35

a Philadelphia Public Defender, Andrew

13:37

Pappas works fifty to sixty

13:39

cases at any given time,

13:41

but no cases more memorable

13:43

than one involving or of

13:45

p client. A man named

13:47

Gerald Camp Gerald was convicted

13:49

and was facing a sentence

13:51

of ten to twenty years.

13:53

Both Gerald and I were.

13:56

Pretty devastated and twenty six he

13:58

killed a sound. The of illegally

14:01

possessing two guns they were found in

14:03

his girlfriend's house. Or just say I

14:05

already wrote it off my favorite I

14:08

want Away. For a long time it

14:10

was over me. Gerald has a lengthy

14:12

criminal record. In Two Thousand Eight, he

14:15

was convicted of manslaughter for the fatal

14:17

shooting of a sixteen year old mother.

14:19

He's also been convicted of multiple assault

14:22

and drug charges. The here are go

14:24

a joke of we We enters into

14:26

San Angel Summer. May have been guilty,

14:29

may have played. A part me have

14:31

played a role for disarming one hundred

14:33

per se. innocent. But

14:35

it was Geralds word against the arresting

14:37

officer detective still have no No as

14:39

a trial Nord who testified that the

14:42

guns belong to jail and in fact

14:44

just Cunningham at the end of the

14:46

trial as he was delivering his verdict

14:48

of made it clear that his verdict

14:51

was entirely based on the testimony of

14:53

Detective Nord of. Sitting.

14:55

In jail waiting for sensing Gerald use

14:57

a rumor about nor know it's a

14:59

ton of rumors that he sinks can

15:01

help get him out of jail. So

15:04

he calls and I think my reaction

15:06

was codger of yeah, I'm sure their

15:08

stories about lots of the tagged as

15:10

lots of police but there's no way

15:12

that this could possibly be true. Today.

15:15

We're revisiting the story from

15:17

reporters Samantha Malamud increase Palmer

15:19

from The Philadelphia Inquirer. The.

15:22

Taking as inside Nord was career

15:24

as a homicide detective. A quick

15:26

warning: this episode contains descriptions of

15:29

sexual violence that may be triggering

15:31

to some listeners. Chris

15:33

has been covering Nord of Story since the

15:35

beginning. He picks it up with Gerald and

15:38

the Rumor. It

15:40

all started because Gerald saw a familiar

15:42

face in jail. His. Girlfriend's

15:44

brother Raheem. They. Say

15:47

hi, Start talking and in that

15:49

conversation, Raheem tells Gerald he's getting

15:51

official visits from a detective site.

15:54

What has actually become a C

15:56

unofficial visit. he said

15:58

the white are mortal that i'm sorry Detective

16:01

Nordo, Gerald's arresting officer.

16:04

I said, what the F he be

16:06

coming to see you for? Gerald didn't know

16:08

it at the time, but Rahim

16:10

was a key witness in one of Nordo's

16:12

murder cases. It was his

16:14

first hint that Rahim might be an informant.

16:17

I thought somehow he must be telling Nordo stuff

16:19

they got Nordo bringing him stuff in. That's what

16:21

I'm thinking. If

16:24

Rahim was an informant, that was bad

16:26

news for Gerald. As

16:29

far as he knew, Rahim didn't like him.

16:33

Not too long before he was arrested for

16:35

the guns, Gerald had

16:37

gotten into a violent altercation

16:39

with his girlfriend, Rahim's sister.

16:42

And when Rahim found out, he wanted

16:44

Gerald out of his sister's life. But

16:48

Gerald and his girlfriend had patched things up

16:50

and were still talking while he was in jail. And

16:53

it's on one of those calls that

16:56

she tells Gerald about Rahim and Nordo.

16:59

She was telling me that they was messing around.

17:02

They had some type of sexual relationship or

17:04

a manly relationship going on. They

17:07

was going to hotels and stuff that

17:09

Nordo had asked him before to see if

17:11

they could do a threesome. Gerald's

17:14

girlfriend denied my request for an interview,

17:16

so I couldn't confirm this with her.

17:19

But it got Gerald thinking about his gun

17:22

case. This was his theory. The

17:25

guns, he figured, were Rahim's. Rahim

17:28

wanted Gerald locked up and away

17:30

from his sister. Rahim

17:33

and Nordo were also in a

17:35

relationship, both as cop

17:37

and informant, and maybe

17:39

romantically? Either way,

17:42

Nordo would want to protect

17:44

Rahim, so it would benefit

17:46

both of them to frame Gerald for

17:48

the guns. look

18:00

at Rahim's prison records to

18:03

find anything that could show Rahim

18:05

and Nordo had an inappropriate relationship.

18:08

Anything that might prove that Nordo

18:10

helped frame Gerald. So Peter, all

18:12

his phone call records, his visit

18:14

records, his common city records, everything.

18:18

But Andrew wasn't as hopeful. He

18:21

didn't think this rumor was true to begin with. And

18:23

even if it was, why would a

18:25

homicide detective say anything about it

18:27

on a recorded prison line? It's

18:30

the kind of thing that the first time you hear it, you're like,

18:33

okay, can't

18:35

possibly be true. Just the

18:38

idea that someone, I think,

18:40

would be so brazen about it. Nordo

18:43

was a third-generation cop. He

18:45

made a detective in 2002, and he was known in the

18:48

department as a relentless investigator who worked

18:51

around the clock to solve difficult cases.

18:54

Andrew had first encountered Nordo at

18:56

Gerald's trial. He does not lack

18:58

for confidence. He is

19:00

a larger

19:02

man, Caucasian,

19:05

bald, kind

19:07

of has the look of what you

19:09

would expect of a

19:11

20-plus year veteran homicide detective.

19:19

Nordo got promoted to homicide in

19:21

2009. It's the most prestigious unit

19:23

in a police department of around

19:25

6,000 cops. Soon

19:28

after that promotion, he was handpicked to

19:30

serve on a special task force that

19:33

handled complex or high-profile cases. Nordo

19:36

had an unusually rich network of sources

19:38

and informants, both on the streets and

19:40

in prison. He worked

19:43

without a regular partner and often

19:45

met with informants alone, unsupervised, at

19:47

odd hours or off-site. Commanders

19:50

raved about Nordo's dedication, which was

19:52

reflected in his earnings. His

19:55

salary was more than $80,000 a year, but

19:58

he usually doubled that with over-doubt. time

20:00

pay. And most

20:02

importantly, Nordo helped close

20:04

cases. During eight years

20:06

in homicide, he helped secure

20:09

nearly 100 convictions. With

20:14

Gerald's sentencing approaching, Andrew

20:16

finally got Rahim's recorded phone calls.

20:20

He wasn't holding his breath. So I

20:22

get the disc, I stick it in my computer, I'm

20:24

like, well, I

20:26

got a minute. Let me listen to a couple of these. Have

20:31

a prepaid call. You will not be charged for

20:33

this call. What's call is from? Rahim,

20:36

babe. The

20:38

very first phone call was Rahim calling

20:40

his girlfriend talking, you know,

20:42

he, the day he gets booked into

20:45

the prison or the first phone call he's able to make.

20:47

I wish I could say so much over the phone, but I

20:49

can't. And after some back and

20:52

forth about, you know, whatever

20:54

day to day normal stuff, he

20:57

ends up saying the words, boyfriend is

20:59

locked up for a gun right now. Plus,

21:03

when he, plus when he fractured her

21:05

shoulder, he broke a collarbone. He locked up for all that

21:07

right now. So how'd

21:09

you get a locked up? Because

21:12

it was either me or him. When

21:15

Andrew heard those words, it proved to

21:17

him that Gerald was set up. And

21:20

it's like that moment that you never

21:22

believe you'll have in your career where

21:25

you literally just found the smoking gun,

21:27

proved that Gerald had been telling me

21:29

the truth the whole time. It

21:32

was, you know, pulling the thread that

21:34

ultimately unraveled that whole sweater.

21:37

And Andrew kept pulling. The

21:39

end of the first phone call, he

21:41

says, hey, babe, how long have

21:43

we been on the phone? I need to save a few minutes.

21:46

I got to call that detective. The

21:48

second phone call he

21:50

makes that day is to detective

21:52

Nordow. I

22:00

don't have that much time left. Listen,

22:02

I need you to get me out of here, man. Let Judge

22:04

means know what I've done so far and what I'm going to

22:07

continue. Please. Listen,

22:11

I have a million bad guys, a million guns, and

22:13

a million drugs. I can get you guys. Just please

22:15

get me out of here. I'm not worried about all

22:17

that. I'm working on that. Listen,

22:20

I will call you back tomorrow. I don't have

22:22

that much time left. Please pull some strings,

22:24

man, and get me out of here. I'll tell

22:26

you. I told you what I was going to do. Alright,

22:28

thanks. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Okay.

22:31

Alright. Andrew

22:36

keeps going through the calls, and he

22:38

finds dozens with Nordo. Each

22:40

one seems stranger than the

22:42

last. The detective talked about putting

22:44

money into Rahim's commissary account, sometimes begrudgingly.

22:48

When did you become one of my dependents? Yeah.

22:52

You know what I mean? I woke up and I found

22:54

out I had another kid. The

22:56

detective asked personal questions about other men

22:58

in jail. I want to know what

23:00

he looks like, though. It's

23:03

hard. Spanish, but...

23:06

So I'm going to have to look him up. Oh,

23:09

sure. Yeah, he's

23:11

probably about five or

23:13

seven. He'll get a little shorter than

23:15

me. So

23:18

he's going to take care of me, too, right? Absolutely.

23:24

Andrew also found Nordo making

23:26

jealous comments. You're even taking

23:28

care of him there. You

23:30

got a cellie and all that. In other

23:33

words, you got yourself a little something-something.

23:36

Right there. Right there. I

23:38

already know. You think I'm stupid. You

23:41

know what I mean? That's okay. That's cool.

23:43

That's cool. Okay. Rahim

23:46

and Nordo declined my interview

23:48

requests, so I've never gotten

23:51

to ask either of them about these calls

23:53

or their relationship. What

23:55

I can say is none of this

23:57

is normal behavior for a Philadelphia homicide.

24:00

detective. Andrew

24:04

takes these recordings to the DA's office, and

24:06

then they both take the calls to the

24:09

judge in Gerald's case. They

24:11

argued that the calls raised all

24:13

kinds of questions about Nordo's relationship

24:15

with Rahim and cast doubt

24:17

on whether Nordo was telling the truth

24:20

when he testified against Gerald. The

24:22

judge agreed and threw the whole case out.

24:26

What was your reaction? What did that feel like? Oh

24:28

man, it was like a breath of fresh air because ain't

24:30

nothing like being in trouble with something you didn't do. From

24:35

the moment that we got the phone calls and we

24:37

knew Detective Nordo's involvement,

24:39

my concern was Gerald and getting

24:41

Gerald out. Andrew's

24:44

next concern was helping other defendants

24:46

in cases built by Nordo. He

24:49

starts telling defense attorneys about the

24:51

tapes, including one named Robert Gamburg.

24:53

My name is Robert Gamburg. I'm

24:55

a criminal defense attorney. I've been a criminal defense

24:57

attorney for the past 29 years. Robert

25:01

was representing a client who was allegedly

25:03

caught on video committing a murder. Nordo

25:06

was the lead investigator in that case, and

25:09

Rahim was supposed to testify against

25:11

Robert's client. After

25:13

hearing from Andrew, Robert also subpoenas

25:16

the phone calls between Nordo and

25:18

Rahim. The more we listened to,

25:21

the worse it got. Why is a

25:23

homicide detective having an extremely personal relationship

25:25

with a kid that's 20, 30

25:28

years younger than him? Robert goes

25:30

a step further. He subpoenas

25:32

Rahim's jail commissary accounts and

25:35

finds eight $50 payments from Nordo

25:37

to Rahim, payments Nordo

25:39

made in his own name and with

25:42

police headquarters listed as his address. Again,

25:45

this is not normal behavior for

25:47

a Philadelphia homicide detective. He

25:50

was so, I'll

25:53

call it arrogant, he was so arrogant

25:55

That he's literally depositing that money in

25:58

his own name. Using

26:00

the address of homicide. As.

26:02

Where the money city from. Brazen,

26:06

absolutely brazen, Robert

26:10

presented to prison audio and

26:12

commissary deposits in Core. Prosecutors.

26:15

Believe they had a strong case against

26:17

Roberts client. Was. Video evidence the

26:19

he had committed a murder. The

26:22

judge still ruled that Nord

26:24

whose misconduct to tainted the

26:26

investigation beyond repair. She.

26:28

Through the whole case out before trial.

26:31

She. Was so comfortable doing it that he then

26:33

he would try to hide. The.

26:36

Woods or it's so there's

26:38

absolutely. No doubt my

26:40

mind's. That. This was

26:42

a powder. The

26:44

Da's office had launched an investigation

26:47

into Nor. And. They were

26:49

bringing their findings to a secret grand

26:51

jury. With the help

26:53

of the police Department, the investigation

26:55

started by reviewing hundreds of phone

26:57

calls and emails between Nor Know.

27:00

And. Incarcerated men. To

27:03

the people listening were Brian

27:05

Collins or name is Brian

27:07

Collins and Vincent Corrigan. My name

27:09

is Vincent Corrigan, both Assistant

27:11

District Attorneys in the Special

27:13

Investigations Unit. Brian.

27:15

Was the lead and during the investigation

27:18

Brian and Vince would go back and

27:20

forth between each other's offices, talk through

27:22

patterns they were soon. we're looking com

27:24

a lot of studies or do you

27:27

think of this well as as much

27:29

how nord old which heatedly called men

27:31

Freaks and told them to keep an

27:33

open mind. Vince remembered

27:36

being struck by a Nord

27:38

Oh tagline. the came up

27:40

again and again the initials

27:42

L L R Love Loyalty

27:44

A Respect. Nord. Oh said

27:46

L. A. Two.

27:48

Different guys all time. In.

27:51

Other the basically the theory that

27:53

we came up with assess assess

27:55

the way as and signaling like

27:57

a church camps. He

28:00

had my. Nine. Usually Danny

28:03

one. A porn business

28:05

was another pattern. Nord.

28:07

I would write in emails and promising

28:09

calls to get men jobs in porn

28:11

or encourage them to consider it. Brian.

28:15

Never found any proof that nord I was

28:17

involved in such a business. But.

28:19

He had this theory about it. It.

28:21

Was a way of sort testing see

28:23

how people reacted. To having

28:25

a sexual and part of the conversation

28:28

come up. If I thought about porn.

28:30

Are you gonna completely shut down? Or

28:32

are you going to keep talking to

28:34

me? A warning

28:36

hear. The. Material Brian Sound

28:38

Next is graphics and involves

28:40

descriptions of sexual violence and

28:42

abuse. The

28:46

next step in the investigation was the

28:48

call witnesses who had encountered Nord out

28:50

to testify before the grand jury. More.

28:53

Than a dozen people testified about

28:56

strange or inappropriate interactions with Nortel.

28:59

Some. Witnesses said nord I

29:02

was flirtatious and suggestive during

29:04

arrests or an interrogation rooms.

29:07

Others accused the detective of

29:09

sexually harassing and abusing them.

29:12

There. Were several witnesses who's account

29:14

stood out to investigators. One.

29:17

Was a man, Nord? Oh man. While

29:19

looking into the fatal shooting of an

29:21

off duty city police officer in two

29:23

thousand and Twelve, the Grand jury initially

29:25

wanted to interview the man because it

29:27

looked like Nord Oh helped him get

29:29

twenty thousand dollars and city reward money.

29:32

Even. Though he seemed to have virtually no

29:34

role in solving the case, He

29:36

told the Grand jury Nord Oh,

29:38

stayed in touch with them for

29:40

years, sometimes flirting with him, sometimes

29:42

threatening him. And he told the

29:44

Grand Jury that and twenty seventeen.

29:47

He met Nord out in a

29:49

Chinatown hotel room where he said

29:51

the detective raped him. And.

29:53

Was. Extremely emotional

29:56

That was extremely. credible

29:58

and and it matched up with

30:02

kind of the MO language that

30:04

was used, the place. Another

30:09

man was a repeat informant of

30:11

Nordo's. He said the

30:13

detective tried to kiss and grope

30:15

him in an elevator at police

30:17

headquarters while he was handcuffed. The

30:22

third witness was a state prison guard

30:24

who met Nordo during a murder investigation.

30:27

He described what sounded like a

30:29

pretty terrifying and difficult encounter in

30:32

Nordo's car, where Nordo

30:34

tried to sexually assault him in the

30:36

car, but he was able to fight

30:38

him off and get out. The

30:41

men who testified about being harmed

30:43

by Nordo painted a disturbing portrait

30:45

of a serial predator who

30:48

used a police badge to

30:50

sexually violate witnesses and informants.

30:54

There was one other alarming discovery

30:56

in Nordo's personnel file. It

30:58

was a complaint against him from 2005, years

31:02

before he was promoted to homicide, and

31:05

long before he encountered most of the

31:07

people interviewed before the grand jury. A

31:10

2005 complaint was made by a man

31:12

whom Nordo questioned about a robbery. The

31:15

man accused Nordo of kissing him in an

31:17

interrogation room, groping him, and

31:19

forcing him to masturbate. National

31:23

Affairs investigated. Nordo

31:25

denied the allegations. And

31:28

the police department sent the case to

31:30

the DA's office for potential charges. It

31:33

was particularly striking because there was DNA

31:35

evidence in that case. They

31:37

tested it. It was semen. The

31:40

DNA matched the complainant. So I mean,

31:42

there was some somewhat

31:44

substantial corroboration for what he was saying.

31:47

But the DA's office declined to

31:50

prosecute. The paperwork closing

31:52

the case doesn't explain why. One

31:55

Police commander I spoke to years after

31:57

the case told me this theory. Even.

32:00

With Dna evidence, the only proves

32:02

that Nord oh force the man

32:04

to do anything was his word.

32:07

And why would prosecutors believe a

32:09

suspect over a cop? Prosecutors.

32:13

Now say nord. I went on

32:15

to exploit that power imbalance for

32:17

the rest of his career. Sexual.

32:20

Predators. Go.

32:23

Where. The. Vulnerable.

32:26

And. Some

32:28

of the victim said to us,

32:31

you know he kept saying that

32:33

he could go back to this

32:35

two year olds homicide him.this case

32:38

on me through conspiracy and so

32:40

they. Meet with

32:42

him when it makes no sense

32:44

for them to meet and those kinds

32:47

of manipulation. So in the end

32:49

and like this is a perfect place

32:51

for sexual predator to be is

32:53

in the middle of this. Masses

32:57

vulnerable population. After.

33:00

Months of investigating in secret.

33:03

The. Grand Jury and twenty nineteen

33:05

recommended charges against Nord. L.

33:07

A former Philadelphia Police detective is

33:10

charged with sexually assaulting mail the

33:12

witnesses and suspects for more than

33:14

a decade, using his influence to

33:17

control inmates Susie, sex, intimidation and

33:19

coercion felt nor do was arraigned

33:21

on rape, indecent assaults and other

33:24

sexual offenses. Nora was also charged

33:26

with official a press in which

33:29

is using your public position to

33:31

violate someone's rights Press one to

33:33

reduce the spring com press to

33:36

remember Believe Wagner. The. Man

33:38

convicted of murder in the case nord own Health

33:40

Build and twenty ten. And the

33:42

one who said nord I asked him about doing porn.

33:44

thinking. For using Secure Us when

33:46

they start the conversation. Now. Gets

33:49

off. By. This time he

33:51

told his family about how the detectors came

33:54

on to him. And. I'll practice

33:56

that all sell. The.

33:58

Leak found out about the charges. against Nordo

34:00

on the phone with his aunt. I

34:03

remember when you told me the story about the cop. She's

34:05

like, yeah, he got arrested and everything. And it was for

34:08

what you said. Malik hoped

34:10

that a judge would overturn his conviction

34:12

based on the detective's pattern of misconduct.

34:14

I also knew like, all right, well,

34:17

it's going to be a long shot.

34:19

A long shot because he didn't trust

34:22

the system to hold a police officer

34:24

accountable and because the system never

34:26

really worked for him to begin with. I'm

34:29

so used to like seeing

34:31

that cops got away with certain stuff,

34:33

especially in Philadelphia. They don't care what

34:35

a cop do. You know, the union.

34:37

Thank you for using. Secure us. Goodbye.

34:45

Nordo was arrested in 2019, but

34:48

his trial wouldn't begin for another three

34:50

years. Would

34:52

the Philadelphia court system prove Malik

34:54

right? What would a jury

34:57

think of the allegations against Nordo? Would

34:59

Nordo serve time for what he'd done? That's

35:02

up next on Reveal. From

35:23

the Center for Investigative Reporting in

35:25

PRX, this is Reveal. I'm

35:27

Al Ledcett. Okay,

35:29

it is the afternoon of Wednesday, May 18th,

35:34

and I am just leaving the

35:37

criminal courthouse in Philadelphia after the trial.

35:39

The trial of former detective Philip Nordo

35:41

began in 2022, almost

35:44

20 years after the first sexual

35:46

complaint was filed against. Another really

35:50

kind of disturbing day of testimony from

35:53

a witness who again accused Phil Nordo of

35:56

assault. Philadelphia

35:58

enfire a reporter, Chris Palmer

36:00

and had a front row seat.

36:02

Said that Pennsylvania doesn't allow recording

36:05

inside it's courtrooms. The Chris kept

36:07

voice memos diaries as he covered

36:09

every day of the trial for

36:11

about three weeks at a day

36:14

Is why? Along the lines of

36:16

a bookkeeping guy what I'll call

36:18

raid of seems today we're closing

36:20

in on the end of the

36:23

prosecution's case during our think of

36:25

this moment Bordeaux and Self and

36:27

assessed by Chris Simms reporting partner

36:29

Samir. Some alarm it had been

36:32

covering nord old since reports of

36:34

his misconduct first became public. Neuro

36:36

was charged with a number of

36:38

violent crimes including rape and sexual

36:40

assault. So. Just a reminder

36:42

as Chris takes us through the

36:44

case, they will be some graphic material

36:47

that's not appropriate for all listeners whose

36:49

Chris was how the trial went, To

36:57

case against Nord I rested on

36:59

the testimony of three men. Each one

37:02

spent nearly an entire day on the

37:04

witness stand testifying that the sawed off

37:06

the detective sexually assaulted them. One

37:09

witness said he was so ashamed about

37:12

what happened he'd never told his family.

37:14

Another covered his ears as his recorded

37:16

jail cause with nord own were played

37:18

for the jury. Going.

37:21

Into the trial, the prosecutors

37:23

were nervous, even with the

37:25

emotionally powerful testimony they had.

37:27

Sexual assault cases with alleged

37:29

crimes the happened years ago

37:31

are often difficult to win.

37:35

Nor does lawyers sought to pick

37:37

apart the three witnesses' Stories highlighting

37:40

inconsistency is that could undermine their

37:42

credibility. One lawyer called a sobbing

37:44

witness, an actor who cried and

37:47

crocodile tears. Nord. Own

37:49

never took the stand himself. But.

37:51

his lawyers portrayed him as an

37:53

exceptionally dedicated detectives always working always

37:56

following up on tips from his

37:58

vast network of sore If

38:01

his methods appeared unconventional at times,

38:04

they said, that's because solving murders

38:06

can be messy. Homicide

38:09

investigations are full of fraught interactions with

38:11

people who may not be willing to

38:13

talk or may not be telling the truth.

38:16

And they called to the stand more than a

38:18

dozen character witnesses, nor does wife,

38:21

his two kids, family members, and

38:23

neighbors. Just

38:25

if he was a law abiding, truthful, and

38:27

peaceful person, all said yes. It

38:34

took the jury less than two days to reach a

38:36

verdict. Our top story takes us to

38:40

guilty verdicts across the board against the

38:42

former Philadelphia homicide detective charged with sexual

38:44

assault and corruption. We're joined guilty on

38:46

all 18 counts, including

38:48

the rape, sexual assault, and

38:50

official oppression charges. Nordo

38:53

was facing years in prison. After

38:56

the verdict, a few people milled around in front

38:58

of the courthouse. I

39:01

stopped to talk with Nordo's lawyer,

39:03

Michael Vanderveen. You just start with

39:05

your reaction to the verdict. I

39:08

was disappointed with the verdict. We

39:10

respect the jury, but strongly disagree with their

39:12

verdict. We'll be looking towards appeals. You say

39:14

you disagree with the jury's verdict. You

39:17

still believe Phil Nordo is innocent of these crimes?

39:21

I believe in his innocence. Yes, I do. I

39:24

do. So you think they were telling

39:26

false stories about what happened? I

39:29

think that the jury got the verdict wrong. After

39:36

his trial, I sent letters asking to speak

39:39

with each of Nordo's character witnesses. No

39:41

one replied. Same goes for

39:43

Nordo. He hasn't responded to any of

39:46

my requests for comment. Throughout

39:49

the trial, Nordo's attorneys deny that

39:51

he sexually abused anyone. They

39:54

suggested that part of his job involved

39:56

having conversations with witnesses that might sound

39:58

inappropriate to announce. outsider. Nordeaux's

40:01

role, his lawyers said, was

40:04

to build, report, and get people to talk

40:06

when they were reluctant or even hostile. And

40:09

part of his method was saying whatever

40:11

it took to keep that conversation going.

40:15

To some experts, though, that approach

40:17

is flawed, even if

40:19

it's how homicide detectives across the country

40:21

have been trained to interrogate. The

40:23

entire interrogation is designed to

40:25

get a statement. That

40:27

is the goal. Marissa

40:29

Blustein is a former head of

40:32

the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, where she

40:34

helped free 14 people who were

40:36

wrongfully convicted. She's now on

40:38

faculty at the Quattrone Center, part

40:41

of the University of Pennsylvania's law school.

40:43

So in the United States, police

40:45

are allowed to lie to somebody in an

40:47

interview. So they're allowed to lie and say

40:49

they have evidence that they don't actually have.

40:52

It's not about understanding the crime. It's

40:55

not about getting information. It's about trying

40:57

to manipulate you as the

41:00

suspect into giving me that answer.

41:03

We obtained emails Nordeaux wrote to

41:06

an interrogation expert about his method,

41:08

which he called rapport manipulation. He

41:11

said, quote, I've taken it very

41:13

seriously for many years now. And

41:15

he added that it was a real science.

41:18

There's no science behind that whatsoever.

41:21

We showed the emails to Marissa and

41:23

she saw Nordeaux describing some of the

41:25

same pressure techniques detectives in the U.S.

41:27

have been trained in since the 1950s.

41:31

It is in the emails pretty

41:33

indicative of a mindset of I'm

41:36

right. We're wrong.

41:38

I'm going to justify what I

41:40

do. And it's that tunnel vision. There's

41:43

no discussion in there about listening to

41:45

that person, building rapport, understanding where they're

41:47

coming from. Marissa said

41:49

that although Nordeaux's crimes of sexual

41:51

abuse may sound unique and extreme,

41:54

he sees parallels between what he was convicted

41:57

of and the way he describes

41:59

his interrogation We know that

42:01

sexual abuse is not about sex, it's about power. Interrogating

42:04

somebody in an interrogation room is

42:06

often about power. Nordo

42:08

is far from the only homicide detective

42:11

who abused his position of authority. Similar

42:14

high profile cases have surfaced

42:16

in cities across the country,

42:18

including New York, Chicago, Norfolk,

42:20

and Kansas City. Detectives

42:23

have been accused of serial misconduct,

42:26

everything from fabricating confessions to

42:28

torturing suspects in cases going

42:30

back decades. Marissa

42:33

says it's the lack of

42:35

accountability from the entire system,

42:37

police departments, prosecutors, and court

42:39

officials, that allows this

42:42

misconduct to keep happening decade

42:44

after decade. It's still

42:46

that issue of why

42:48

wasn't that behavior detected earlier? We

42:51

need to be able to, as a

42:53

system, respond when there's an allegation of

42:55

error or blatant misconduct. And

42:58

so engaging in something like a root cause

43:00

analysis, not just to sit down and go,

43:02

oh, well, the tech Nordo is a bad

43:04

one, but to look at the

43:06

system. How did the

43:08

system let that go on? And

43:11

how do we prevent it from happening again? That

43:15

question remained. Had the Philadelphia

43:17

Police Department responded to its own

43:19

failures? Had it created

43:21

any reforms to prevent the next Nordo?

43:24

I went with my reporting partner, Samantha Malamed,

43:27

to find out. So

43:29

we're at Broad and Cowell Hill Street

43:31

in Philadelphia. I'm with Chris Palmer, our

43:33

reporting partner. We met outside

43:35

the Philadelphia Police Department's new headquarters in

43:37

a building that used to be the

43:39

home of our newspaper, the Philadelphia Inquirer.

43:43

It used to be called the Tower of Truth. I

43:45

mean, I made a lame joke in a story that

43:47

it's now the Tower of Power, but I

43:49

don't know if that's quite caught on yet. I

43:51

think that remains to be seen. Once

43:54

we're inside, an officer escorts us to

43:56

a large empty conference room to

43:59

meet Frank Van Oyl. My name

44:01

is Frank Van Orr. I'm the deputy commissioner

44:03

of investigations for the Philadelphia Police Department.

44:06

Van Orr has been in the department for more than

44:08

30 years, though he

44:10

never worked with Nordo directly. Obviously

44:13

it's a disgrace. It's a disgrace.

44:16

So it's all I could say is moving

44:18

forward we're very very very in tune to

44:20

what's happening and what the detectives are up

44:22

to. He says what Nordo

44:24

got away with couldn't happen today. He points

44:27

to reforms that were made in 2014.

44:30

The reforms required detectives to

44:32

video record interrogations and

44:35

they set a limit on how long someone can be

44:37

held for questioning. Detectives

44:39

must also tell witnesses that

44:42

their participation is voluntary. But

44:45

those reforms happened three years

44:47

before Nordo was fired. We

44:50

asked again, has the department taken

44:52

any measures to prevent another Nordo?

44:55

In other institutions or other cases where

44:57

if there's a failure within they

44:59

might look and say how to do a sentinel review. How

45:01

did this happen and what can we do to prevent it

45:03

from happening again? Was there anything

45:05

on that level that occurred here as

45:07

a result of the Nordo? I don't

45:09

know if it was a result of

45:11

Nordo but there are policy reviews every

45:13

week. I promise you many of these

45:15

new policies that we have whether the

45:17

informants, interviews, video

45:20

recording, all that stuff if it

45:23

needed to be updated it was updated.

45:25

I couldn't give it a timeline of that or nor

45:27

was I involved in it back then. I'm

45:29

involved in it now. We're looking very

45:31

closely at every policy. Van

45:34

Or couldn't point to a single

45:36

reform and specifically in response to

45:38

Nordo's wrongdoing. Meanwhile,

45:44

the Philadelphia District Attorney has committed

45:46

to reviewing all cases involving Nordo.

45:50

Prosecutors are going through one by

45:52

one assessing whether or not each

45:55

of the convictions he secured was

45:57

tainted by his misconduct. It's

46:00

the first time a Philadelphia DA

46:02

has reviewed a detective's entire body

46:05

of work. Prosecutors

46:10

still haven't decided what to do with

46:13

Malik Mariner's case. This

46:19

is a call from Pennsylvania State

46:21

Correctional Institution. In Brackville, this call

46:23

is subject to recording and monitoring.

46:26

All right, can you hear me? Yeah, I can hear you.

46:28

Malik was convicted of murder in

46:31

2013, even though

46:33

one eyewitness, found by Nordo, had

46:35

admitted on the stand that he was the killer.

46:39

Malik had a meeting with an attorney from

46:41

the DA's office. His

46:43

lawyer was angling for a plea agreement

46:46

that would make Malik eligible for

46:48

parole right away. Basically,

46:50

I was under the impression from my lawyer

46:53

that I would be getting a 12 to 24 year

46:58

sentence, so I would be released.

47:00

Going into that meeting, Malik had

47:02

planned to agree with the story

47:05

the prosecution told about his case, that

47:08

he was part of the drug ring and that

47:10

he had colluded in the murder. But

47:12

then, the conversation turned to

47:14

Nordo. When we start talking

47:17

about Nordo, that's when I stopped, because

47:19

I was kind of feeling uncomfortable with,

47:21

like, speaking on it. Malik

47:23

said he's still angry about what the detective

47:25

had done, and so he went

47:27

off his lawyer's script. I was like,

47:30

look, man, I'm really innocent of this. The

47:32

only witness that was used

47:34

against me, he admitted to committing

47:36

this crime. Like, who's determining what

47:39

is true and what is false? Malik

47:42

says his lawyer told him that by

47:44

speaking up, he'd thrown the

47:46

prospect of a plea agreement into jeopardy.

47:48

And Malik

47:52

also isn't sure he would

47:54

even take a deal if it's offered. He

47:57

could stay in prison and fight for full exoneration.

48:00

But that feels like. A beggar asked

48:02

to see you. Know

48:06

how corrupt system to speak

48:08

out on one a ticket?

48:10

chase? Freedom. Leaks.

48:16

And his family wants him to

48:18

take it young, come home. They're

48:20

worried about is how imprison he's

48:23

developed dangerously high blood pressure. He

48:25

also wants to get antsy. can

48:27

be there for. His grandmother, who's

48:29

been confined to a hospital bed

48:31

in her living room. He

48:34

worries the any relief from. The courts

48:36

will come soon enough. After.

48:43

The Story for Seared: The Da's office

48:46

offered leak a plea agreement, one that

48:48

would make him eligible for parole in

48:50

under two years, but he'd still come

48:52

out of prison with a murder conviction

48:55

on his record. Leaked

48:57

to the deal. In the meantime,

48:59

he accomplished a major goal. In

49:01

prison, He was accepted into Villanova

49:04

University and started classes towards his

49:06

bachelor's degree last fall in December

49:08

of Twenty Twenty to fill of

49:10

Nord A was sentenced to a

49:13

minimum of twenty four and a

49:15

half years in prison. In his

49:17

ruling, Judge Giovanni Campbell said normal

49:19

exhibited a disturbing capacity for coupons.

49:22

The judge added that Nord or

49:24

had weaponized his power and influence

49:26

as. A police officer. Since

49:28

noodles crimes have come to

49:30

light, Philadelphia judges have overturned

49:32

Sistine murder convictions. Nord A.

49:35

worked on some of those

49:37

defendants have to complete deals,

49:39

others are facing new trials.

49:41

Ten people have been exonerated,

49:44

To increase is the

49:47

masses full investigation for

49:49

the Philadelphia Inquirer. Go

49:52

to enquirer.com/detective Again, that's

49:54

enquirer.com/detective. A

49:59

lead to do so. for this week's show is

50:01

Najee Bamine. Jenny Costas edited the

50:03

show with help from Jim Neff

50:05

at the Philadelphia Inquirer and Queena

50:07

Kim. Special thanks to Nancy Phillips.

50:10

Support for the Philadelphia Inquirer is

50:12

provided by the Lenfess Institute for

50:14

Journalism. Nikki Frick is our fact

50:16

checker. Victoria Baranetski is our general

50:18

counsel. Our production managers are Stephen

50:20

Rascone and Sue Lemakob. Original score

50:23

and sound designed by the dynamic

50:25

duo Jay Breezy, Mr. Jim Briggs

50:27

and Fernando Ma'Man, Yo Arruda. Our

50:29

post-production team is the Justice League.

50:31

And this week it includes Claire

50:34

C. Node-Mullen and Catherine Steyer Martinez.

50:36

Our COO is Maria Feldman. Our

50:38

CEO is Robert Rosenthal. Our interim

50:40

executive producers are Brett Myers and

50:43

Taki Telenides. Our theme music is

50:45

by Camarado, Lightning. Support

50:47

for reveals provided by the Riva

50:49

and David Logan Foundation. The Ford

50:52

Foundation, the John D. and Catherine

50:54

T. MacArthur Foundation, the Jonathan Logan

50:56

Family Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson

50:58

Foundation, the Park Foundation and the

51:00

Hellman Foundation. Reveal is a co-production of

51:03

the Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX.

51:06

I'm Al Letzen and remember, there is

51:08

always more to the story. From

51:26

PRX.