Calexico Police Dept. ‘Plagued by Extortion,’ New Chief Says

http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2015/01/12/calexico-police-dept-plagued-by-extortion-new-chief-says

Calexico, the Imperial County city with a population of 39,000, is bordered on three sides by lettuce and alfalfa fields, and on the fourth by the fence dividing the U.S. from Mexico. It’s the kind of town where everybody knows everybody — and everybody’s business.

But many locals said they were surprised when the FBI paid a visit to the Police Department in late October. Agents took files and computers. Four cops were put on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation. One of them was fired shortly before Christmas.