KCK Police Department to review over 150 cases investigated by former detective accused of sex trafficking
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department will review more than 150 cases investigated by a former detective now facing federal charges.
It’s one of two key initiatives the department outlined Monday after a new indictment against former detective Roger Golubski. The second is an internal review of Golubski’s tenure.
Last week, Golubski was accused of protecting sex traffickers and getting paid to do it. He already faces federal charges for civil rights violations.
KCK Police Chief Karl Oakman said they’ll use the two initiatives to make sure officers like Golubski don’t exist in the department in the future.
Golubski worked with the KCK Police Department from 1975 to 2010. Oakman said from 1988 to 2002 — the years of alleged sexual assault leading to civil rights violation charges — Golubski worked on 155 cases.
Oakman said he will form a special team of detectives to review all those cases. He said they will focus on three areas.
“…were policies and procedures followed, was the investigation ethical and does the evidence point to the right suspect,” Oakman said.
If the review team finds an issue, the department will notify the Wyandotte County District Attorney’s Office and the FBI. The KCK Police Department’s cold case unit will investigate further.
Last week, Wyandotte County commissioners also gave initial support to the district attorney’s request for $1.7 million to digitize old case files. Mark Dupree wants review Golubski’s cases. He hopes to then begin the digitizing process next month. It’s expected to take 6-18 months.While community members said they’re glad to see the efforts, some said Monday they wish the team wasn’t made up of people within the department.
Local activist group MORE2 released a statement, saying the department’s involvement in the review is “a major red flag.”
“As a department that shielded and protected Golubski, KCKPD should be nowhere near the review of his cases,” MORE2 said in the statement.
MORE2 and other groups, like Jay-Z’s Team Roc, have been calling for the U.S. Department of Justice to launch a pattern and practice investigation into the KCK Police Department.