Last week we talked about  Michael Ciancio, a Chicago ex-cop who pled guilty to Federal extortion charges from the FBI investigation into the Chicago Police Department tow truck scandal.  Today, it’s reported that another ex-cop is involved in this investigation and extortion scandal, former officer Jimmie L. Akins.  This makes a total of 4 police officers who were have been charged in the tow truck bribery scam.

The 41 year old Akins was on the Chicago police force from 1999 through November 2007.  He resigned from the force when he discovered he was being investigated for his involvement in the pay-for-tow scandal that is wracking the police force in up to 6 Districts.  According to the FBI, then-Officer Akins shook down tow truck drivers from March 2006 and April 2007, forcing them to pay him $100 each time he informed them of an accident.  Those who paid were allowed to tow the cars away.

Akins’ shakedown of tow truck drivers was caught on audio tape made by an informant tow truck driver.  On the tapes, Akins repeatedly pressured the driver for $100 payments.  When the driver fell behind on payments totalling $2300, Akins started charging him interest, according to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court.

The hidden-wire conversations also showed Akins boasting that he was collecting shakedown bribes on 10 or more cars a week.  He even bragged about arresting other tow truck drivers who attempted to tow cars that Akins approved for the drivers paying him the bribe money.

After resigning from the force, Akins secured a job on the court reality show Judge Jeanine Pirro.  He was the bailiff on the show for the first season.  The show is filmed in Chicago by Telepictures Productions, a Warner Brothers subsidiary, and carried by WGN, a syndicated station based in Chicago.  Akins was arrested Wednesday on attempted extortion charges and faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.  Inquiries to WGN and Telepictures shows that Akins was “no longer with the show.”  Since the show is taped in advance, he will appear on the television show for the first season.

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