Officer Craig Hermans hasn't been arrested or charged in the federal investigation into an alleged steroid ring at the Arlington Police Department that's already led to the indictment of one colleague and the suicide of another. But he was questioned in connection with the investigation and remains on administrative leave.
So, we don't know what role, if any, Hermans played in tipping off steroid dealers, as Kantzos and Vo are alleged to have done. What we do know is that Hermans has used steroids. He admitted as much three years ago on his job application.
See also
-Thomas Kantzos, Arlington Cop and Alleged Steroid Junky, Charged With Tipping Off His Dealer - Arlington PD Should Probably Start Testing its Officers for Steroids
NBC 5 has the story:
According to the APD employment applications of the officers under investigation, Hermans admitted to prior steroid use.In his application, he said he took steroids for less than a week in his freshman year of college because he "was skinny and had low self-esteem." After six doses, he "stopped and never did it again," he said.
The department seems to have written that off as a youthful indiscretion, something that was outweighed by his other qualifications. And you can't really fault them for that. No one should bear a permanent black mark for dabbling in illicit substances as a coed.
Then again, perhaps the admission of steroid use by a prospective member of the Arlington Police Department should have been cause for greater concern. The department, after all, had some steroid problems of its own. One officer caught doing the drug got her job back on appeal in 2007, and in 2008, officers were part of another alleged steroid ring.
Not that it seems that Hermans was the instigator of the current controversy. It's possible that he wasn't even party to it. Either way, randomly drug testing all officers, as Arlington Police Chief Will Johnson has said he will do, is a good idea.
