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Federal prosecutors are accusing a current Wichita police officer and a former officer of obstruction of justice for their roles in identifying a suspected undercover officer who was investigating illegal gambling.
An indictment unsealed Thursday charges Bruce Mackey, a current officer, and Michael Zajkowski, a former officer, with obstruction of law enforcement, along with Brock Wedman, of St. Marys, Kansas. Wedman also was charged with lying to the Federal Bureau of Investigation about the incident.
Prosecutors allege Wedman and an unindicted co-conspirator owned an illegal gambling business that involved five or more people and grossed more than $2,000 in a day.
The charges stem from a Feb. 12, 2014, illegal poker game during which the three men allegedly used police department resources to determine the ownership of a vehicle driven by a player suspected of being an undercover police officer.
The FBI has been involved in a multi-year investigation in the Wichita area. Gambling911.com has been covering this story over the past year.
Just this week it was reported that two Wichita men plead guilty to federal gambling and income tax charges for their roles in running an online sports betting operation as well as illegal poker games within the city of Wichita.
This past year the Wichita Eagle he was the subject of a federal inquiry into professional poker player and car dealership mogul Brad Steven's playing in high-stakes poker and his involvement in trying to open a casino in Kansas.
Letters initially sent out last February by the U.S. Attorney’s Office were delivered to several parties, including various news outlets, saying that phone communication with Steven was intercepted under federal law during the years 2015 and 2016.
It was not immediately clear whether Steven is named in the indictment unsealed Thursday.
Wichita Mayor Jeff Longwell confirmed the investigation has been going on for at least two years.
"It could be longer, but that's certainly a conservative time frame," Longwell said.
Longwell said he could not comment on how or when he found out about the investigation because it is ongoing.
The FBI would not confirm or deny the investigation, but spokeswoman Bridget Patton said that agents were in Wichita last week.
- Jagajeet Chiba and the Associated Press
