A former DeKalb County police lieutenant was convicted Friday of bribery for taking money from a businessman in exchange for his help in disagreements with others.
Willie Durrett was convicted of one conspiracy charge and two bribery counts. His co-defendant, former Deputy Chief Donald Frank, pleaded guilty a year ago to one count of conspiracy to take bribes, and businessman Amin Budhwani pleaded guilty in 2010 to paying bribes to Frank. Both testified against Durrett.
According to testimony, Budhwani first asked Durrett in 2007 to help him intimidate a small business owner. Durrett, identifying himself as a police officer, made threatening phone calls to the man who eventually paid Budhwani more than $10,000 to settle their dispute. Durrett later helped Budhwani again with a disagreement Budhwani had with business partner.
Durrett will be sentenced Sept. 27. He could get up to 30 years in prison and fines of up to $750,000.
About the Author
