Ray Lopez (born Rafael Antonio Pérez; August 22, 1967) is an American former police officer with the

Los Angeles Police Department The City of Los Angeles Police Department, commonly referred to as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), is the primary law enforcement agency of Los Angeles, California, United States. With 8,832 officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the th ...

(LAPD) and the central figure in the LAPD Rampart scandal. An officer with the Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums (CRASH) task force, Pérez was involved in numerous crimes and corruption, notably the shooting and framing of Javier Ovando, in addition to the theft and resale of at least $800,000 of cocaine from LAPD evidence lockers. Pérez is accused of being a member of the

Bloods The Bloods are a primarily African Americans, African American street gang which was founded in Los Angeles, California. The gang is widely known for Crips–Bloods gang war, its rivalry with the Crips. It is identified by the red color worn ...

, a

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

criminal gang, and of murdering The Notorious B.I.G. at the behest of producer

Suge Knight Marion Hugh "Suge" Knight Jr. ( ; born April 19, 1965) is an American former record executive, former National Football League, NFL player, and convicted felon, who is the co-founder and former CEO of Death Row Records. Knight was a central f ...

Death Row Records Death Row Records is an American record label that was founded in 1991 by The D.O.C., Dr. Dre, Suge Knight, and Dick Griffey. The label became a sensation by releasing multi-platinum hip-hop albums by West Coast-based artists such as Dr. D ...

. When Pérez was finally arrested, he implicated 70 other Rampart Division officers in various forms of misconduct, ranging from bad shootings to consuming alcohol while on duty. Over 100 convictions were overturned based on Pérez's testimony.

Private life

Pérez was born in Humacao,

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

in 1967 and moved to

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, New York in 1972; some months later he moved to

Paterson, New Jersey Paterson ( ) is the largest City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

in 1982. Pérez graduated from high school in 1985 and enlisted in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

, where he was stationed in

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

and

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. He was hired by the LAPD after finishing his military service in 1989. Prior to this, he had been passed over for hiring by background investigators from several other departments in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. He also looked and acted in a "gang like" manner.

Career

After serving on routine patrol duties, Pérez was transferred to a narcotics unit in 1992. In 1995, he was transferred to Rampart Division and assigned to CRASH, an anti-gang unit given a long leash by the LAPD. Pérez gained a reputation as a tough and effective officer, valued for his fluency in Spanish and his knowledge of L.A.'s gangs.

Criminal activities

On October 12, 1996, Pérez and his partner Nino Durden shot and framed an unarmed gang member Javier Ovando. Ovando, who was left paralyzed, was sentenced to 23 years in prison based on the officers' false testimony. On August 25, 1998, Pérez, then age 31 and a nine-year veteran of the

, was arrested for stealing of cocaine from a department property room. (The theft was originally suspected to be an attempt at framing fellow officer Frank Lyga in retaliation for the shooting of Pérez's friend, Kevin Gaines.) The cocaine was estimated to be worth $800,000 on the street. His December 1998 trial ended as a mistrial. To avoid a second trial and the possible conviction of his second wife, who according to authorities may have known about Pérez's illegal activities, on September 8, 1999, he cut a plea bargain with authorities. In his plea bargain he revealed the Rampart scandal in exchange for immunity for his misconduct. On November 6, 1997, fellow CRASH officer David Mack and two accomplices stole $722,000 during a robbery at a

Bank of America The Bank of America Corporation (Bank of America) (often abbreviated BofA or BoA) is an American multinational investment banking, investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered at the Bank of America Corporate Center in ...

branch near the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

campus.

Criminal charges

February 2000

In February 2000, Pérez was sentenced to five years in prison for stealing eight pounds of cocaine from an LAPD evidence locker. At his sentencing, Pérez read a statement in which he said, "I cheated on my wife. I cheated on my employer, and I cheated on all of you, the people of Los Angeles".

July 24, 2001 release

On July 24, 2001, due to his plea bargain Pérez was released from prison and placed on parole.

December 17, 2001 – Federal charges

Pérez pleaded guilty to new charges resulting from the shooting of Javier Ovando. He was charged with 2 felony counts; (1) conspiracy to violate Ovando's civil rights; (2) Possessing a firearm with an eliminated

serial number A serial number (SN) is a unique identifier used to ''uniquely'' identify an item, and is usually assigned incrementally or sequentially. Despite being called serial "numbers", they do not need to be strictly numerical and may contain letters ...

, the firearm was used as evidence to frame Ovando. He was sentenced on May 6, 2002, to serve two years in

federal prison A federal prison is operated under the jurisdiction of a federal government as opposed to a state or provincial body. Federal prisons are used for people who violated federal law (U.S., Mexico), people considered dangerous (Brazil), or those sen ...

. He was released in June 2004.

October 31, 2006 felony count

Pérez, who legally changed his name to Ray Lopez, was arrested in July by Department of Motor Vehicles investigators while visiting his federal parole officer in Inglewood. Pérez pleaded no contest to lying on his application for a California driver's license on June 30, 2005. Pérez was sentenced to an additional three years' probation and 300 hours of community service.

Questions about credibility

The credibility of Pérez has been undermined by his testimony in several internal affairs investigations in which three officers, including Brian Liddy, were accused of crimes or misconduct, only to subsequently be found not guilty or have the charges against them dropped. Pérez also failed several polygraph tests and made numerous errors during past testimony. The issue of Pérez's credibility has already led to at least 5 cases in which charges were either dropped or the defendant was acquitted.

Allegations of involvement in the murder of The Notorious B.I.G.

In March, 1997, influential rapper Christopher Wallace, who was known as The Notorious B.I.G., was murdered in drive-by shooting in

. On April 16, 2007, Wallace's relatives filed a wrongful death suit against the city of Los Angeles, former LAPD officer Rafael Pérez and his partner former Officer Nino Durden, seeking unspecified general, compensatory and punitive monetary damages. The lawsuit was filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court by Wallace's mother, his widow Faith Evans, and his two children. The lawsuit states that Pérez, Nino Durden, their partner former officer David Mack, and "certain unknown persons" were responsible for the death of Christopher Wallace. The rapper was shot to death on March 9, 1997, as he and

Sean Combs Sean John Combs (born November 4, 1969), better known by his stage name Diddy, and formerly Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, record producer, and record executive. Born in Harlem and raised in Mount Vernon, New York, Mount Ve ...

left the 11th Annual Soul Train Music Awards after-party held at the Petersen Automotive Museum on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. The lawsuit states the killing was committed "in a very efficient, organized and professional manner, suggesting that a high degree of coordination and planning preceded his murder." The suit further alleges that Pérez admitted to the LAPD that he and David Mack "conspired to murder, and participated in the murder of Christopher Wallace." It was alleged that Pérez was on duty during the night of March 9, 1997 but there was no evidence of that allegation. Christopher Wallace's murder is believed to have been in retaliation for the murder of Tupac Shakur.

Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur (; born Lesane Parish Crooks; June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor, regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all tim ...

was a member of

, run by Marion "Suge" Knight. Knight is known to have hired off-duty Rampart cops for security such as Kevin Gaines, who was shot to death by fellow LAPD officer Frank Lyga on March 18, 1997. Knight, who grew up in Compton, is well known for his ties to the

. Following his arrest, detectives found several photos of Rafael Pérez flashing Blood gang signs. The connection between Pérez and the murder of Christopher Wallace has long been a source of speculation by the LAPD. The current wrongful death lawsuit states that Pérez was a member of "a violent street gang associated with Death Row Records, and that he was partly responsible for Wallace's death."

In popular culture

*The character of Frank Tenpenny in the 2004 video game '' Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'' "strongly resembles" Perez. *In the 2001 film '' Training Day'',

Denzel Washington Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. (born December 28, 1954) is an American actor, producer, and director. Known for his dramatic roles Denzel Washington on screen and stage, on stage and screen, Washington has received List of awards and nominations ...

said he emulated the style of Rafael Pérez to give authenticity to his portrayal of corrupt LAPD cop Alonzo Harris. The character's vehicle has the license plate ORP 967, which is said to stand for Officer Rafael Pérez, born in 1967. *The television series '' The Shield'' is based on the Los Angeles Rampart scandal, and the show's main character, Officer Vic Mackey, is based loosely on Rafael Pérez. * The TV series ''Mugshots ,'' a crime documentary show from Court TV (now TruTV) released ''Rafael Perez - LAPD's Notorious Cop'' that showcased Pérez's criminal actions. * Pérez is portrayed by Neil Brown Jr. in the 2018 film '' City of Lies'', based on the Rampart scandal and the CRASH officer's alleged involvement in the murder of Biggie Smalls.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Perez, Rafael Antonio 1967 births Living people People from Humacao, Puerto Rico American people of Puerto Rican descent American police officers convicted of depriving others of their civil rights American police officers convicted of perjury Bloods Criminals from California Los Angeles Police Department officers People convicted of illegal possession of weapons Police officers convicted of planting evidence Police officers convicted of drug trafficking Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government Puerto Rican prisoners and detainees Puerto Rican United States Marines Puerto Rican people convicted of drug offenses United States Marines