The arrest of a policeman accused of trying to hire a hitman to kill Cowboys receiver Michael Irvin is the latest revelation in a drug case that began with a loud motel party.
Officer Johnnie Hernandez, 28, was charged with solicitation of capital murder Thursday, a day after he paid "several thousand dollars" as a partial payment to an undercover agent posing as a hitman, police chief Ben Click said.The developments involving the five-year Dallas police veteran, who has been subpoenaed as a witness in Irvin's drug trial, may derail the court proceedings despite the judge's insistence it should not be a factor.
The trial was interrupted in the third day of jury selection by the report of Hernandez's arrest. Prosecutors and defense attorneys were to continue their search for 12 panelists today.
Click said he could not comment on a possible motive because of a gag order issued by state District Judge Manny Alvarez, who is presiding over Irvin's trial. But media reports have suggested ties between Irvin, Hernandez and his live-in girlfriend, Rachelle Smith.
"The officer had wanted the hit to occur very soon," Click said of the deal made in a shopping center parking lot between Hernandez and an agent from the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Police began investigating earlier this week after receiving information that "Hernandez had expressed a desire to hire somebody to kill Mr. Michael Irvin," Click said.
"It makes me feel terrible," he said. "It's one of those things you'd never think you'd see. At the same time, it pleases me this information came to us, and we were able to make an arrest."
Hernandez, who has resigned, was being held at the Lew Sterrett Justice Center today on solicitation of capital murder and bribery charges.
Bail was set at $250,000 on the solicitation count and $2,500 on the bribery charge, a jail spokesman said. If convicted, he faces up to 99 years in prison.
Irvin declined comment as he drove up to the Cowboys' Valley Ranch practice facility Thursday evening, accompanied by five men.
"I don't have anything to say," he said. "I'm just going for a workout."
Because Alvarez has admonished potential jurors not to read or listen to reports about the case, he said Thursday he believed the Irvin case can proceed.
"I have not heard anything that would merit a mistrial. This is not a concern for me. Absolutely not," Alvarez said.
Irvin, 30, was indicted along with topless dancers Jasmine Jennipher Nabwangu, 22, and Angela Renee Beck, 21, who were in an Irving motel room March 4 when police were summoned by an employee complaining about a loud party in one of the rooms. Police said they confiscated cocaine and marijuana and arrested Beck, who told them the drugs belonged to her.
Court records show Beck with the same suburban Cedar Hill address as that of Hernandez and Smith. A man who answered the door at the house in March said that Beck stayed there at one time. Hernandez's number is unlisted, and Smith could not be reached for comment.
Dallas television station WFAA said Irvin's attorney, Kevin Clancy, was apparently so curious about the nature of that relationship that he subpoenaed Hernandez and Smith.
Prosecutor Mike Gillett was also exploring the relationship and had subpoenaed records of an alleged trip to New York in February involving Irvin, Beck and Smith, the station said.
Gillett also wants employment records of Beck, Smith and Nabwangu, who at one time all danced at the topless Men's Club, WFAA reported.
Fort Worth television station KXAS, quoting unnamed sources, reported Smith testified extensively before the grand jury that indicted Irvin.
An unidentified law enforcement source told The Dallas Morning News that Hernandez believed Irvin had repeatedly threatened Smith if she testified at his drug trial and wanted to stop the threats.
"Michael Irvin was tampering with the witness, and he (Hernandez) was going to get it stopped," the source said, adding that Irvin warned the witness repeatedly not to testify about his lifestyle "or you could get hurt."
Another source said Smith was called as a witness because her name appeared on registration records of the Irving motel where Beck was arrested.
KXAS also reported that Dennis Pedini, who appeared in a hidden-camera video purporting to show Irvin discussing buying and using cocaine, and Anthony Montoya, reportedly an Irvin friend, met with Smith and Irvin one night to discuss her grand jury testimony.
After that, Hernandez reportedly got angry and decided he would put out a hit, KXAS said.
Irvin faces a maximum 20-year prison sentence if he is convicted of a second-degree felony cocaine possession charge. He is also charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession.