DETROIT – A former Detective with the Highland Park Police Department was sentenced to two years in prison for conspiring to distribute fentanyl-laced heroin, United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced today.
Ison was joined in the announcement by Special Agent in Charge James A. Tarasca, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Detroit Division.
Tiffany Lipkovitch, 47, of Grosse Pointe, was convicted of conspiring to distribute controlled substances. Lipkovitch was a detective with the Highland Park Police Department, where she had been a police officer since 2011. Federal agents recorded numerous calls and meetings between Lipkovitch and a confidential source about a drug transaction. Lipkovitch gave the source samples of the drugs that were available from her associate and explained the price of each mixture. Lipkovitch explained that her associate was getting “a package of fentanyl . . . from overseas” to mix the drugs. Lipkovitch’s associate later sold the confidential source 45 grams of a fentanyl / heroin mixture. Afterwards, the confidential source met with Lipkovitch—who was on duty and in her police uniform—and gave her $300 for facilitating the drug deal.
“This officer broke the law she swore to enforce by putting dangerous drugs like heroin and fentanyl on the streets of our community,” said U.S. Attorney Ison. “This sentence should send a clear message to any officer who crosses the line and betrays his or her oath of office. If an officer engages in criminal conduct, our office will respond accordingly.”
“This case is an example of the law enforcement community’s joint effort to ensure that police officers who abuse their authority and abandon their oath to serve and protect are held accountable,” said Special Agent in Charge James A. Tarasca, Detroit Division of the FBI. “We appreciate the cooperation of the Highland Park Police Department during this investigation. This defendant’s actions should not diminish the exemplary work conducted every day by the men and women of the HPPD.”
The case was investigated by the FBI Detroit Area Public Corruption Task Force, in collaboration with the Drug Enforcement Administration. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Cares.