FEDS PROBE LAPD; INVESTIGATION OF CORRUPTION WIDENS.

Byline: Rick Orlov, Lisa Van Proyen and Phillip W. Browne Staff Writers

Federal prosecutors entered the LAPD corruption probe Thursday as a 22-year-old illegal immigrant was released from prison and flown back to Los Angeles three years after two Rampart Division officers allegedly framed him in a shooting that left him paralyzed.

U.S. Attorney Alejandro N. Mayorkas said his office would determine whether there were violations of the civil rights of Javier Ovando, who was convicted of assault based on testimony of Officers Rafael Perez and Nino Durden.

Perez, facing cocaine charges, admitted planting a gun on Ovando after Durden, his partner, wounded the Honduran immigrant. Durden has been placed on paid leave and is under investigation for his role in the shooting, said Sandi Gibbons, spokeswoman for District Attorney Gil Garcetti.

``We will work with Chief Bernard Parks and the LAPD to determine all the facts surrounding this matter,'' Mayorkas said. ``What we know so far has raised allegations of a man being improperly convicted and serving time in prison. We want to determine what happened and look into other allegations that have been raised.''

The federal probe came a day after Parks announced a department investigation into corruption and the suspension of 11 current and former Rampart Division officers.

Parks said the department investigation also was triggered by revelations Perez made during plea agreement discussions on charges he stole six pounds of cocaine, worth $800,000, from an evidence locker at Parker Center.

Perez has pleaded guilty to four counts of grand theft and possession of cocaine for sale. He is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 22.

Judge Larry Paul Fidler's decision to release Ovando came after Deputy District Attorney Richard A. Rosenthal filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus Thursday seeking his unconditional release. Perez said he and Durden ``overreacted and shot an unarmed man and subsequently planted a gun on the shooting victim,'' according to the petition.

Ovando, father of a 2-year-old daughter, was released from the maximum-security Salinas Valley State Prison near Soledad late Thursday afternoon. He arrived at Van Nuys Airport around 8:25 p.m. in a twin-engine plane.

Reporters and neighbors waited for Ovando in the Westlake District on Thursday night outside the apartment of his girlfriend, Monique Valenzuela, expecting that he was going to arrive there. According to the attorney representing Valenzuela and their daughter, Destiny Ovando, 2, detectives originally said they were going to bring Ovando to the apartment Thursday evening. However, they later changed their minds and did not allow him to contact her, said attorney Dennis W. Chang. He was believed to be with police.

``We're very disappointed the Los Angeles police have refused this unification,'' Chang said. ``We'd like to get them back together. We're going to do everything we can to make sure that's possible.''

He faces deportation, but he agreed to leave with detectives from the LAPD's Internal Affairs unit, who consider him a key witness in the corruption probe. His cooperation could allow him to stay here indefinitely.

Perez in his plea agreement was granted immunity from prosecution in the Ovando case.

``What he told us in his statement is protected by the plea agreement, but if we come up with independent evidence that was not discussed in his confession, that would open him up to prosecution,'' Gibbons said.

Deputy Public Defender Tamara R. Toister, who defended Ovando in 1997, said she learned of the break in the case only this week.

``He always said he didn't have a gun. He maintained during his trial that he didn't own one and wouldn't know how to get one,'' Toister said.

The inquiry into a dozen Los Angeles police officers, including one supervisor, who had been stationed at the Rampart Division sent shock waves through the department and the city as Parks sought to restore the department's image.

``Credibility is all we have,'' Parks said. ``When we knock on a door, people expect to be treated with respect and dignity. That is the only legacy we leave.''

The department refused to release the list of officers who have been placed on paid leave. The Police Protective League has assigned attorneys to consult with the suspended officers.

``If the department investigates this properly, and I know they will, I know that they're going to find that my client didn't do anything. He'll be right back to work,'' said attorney Barry Levin, who works for the Command Officers Association and represents the sergeant who has been relieved of duty.

Mayor Richard Riordan said he had confidence Parks would appropriately punish any officers who broke the law.

``He's doing (the investigation) in a very tough, impartial way,'' Riordan said. ``He wants the truth, and he's not going to tolerate bad apples. . . . There will be no cover-up. The facts will come out, and the officers will be disciplined if they need to be.''

The investigation at the Rampart Division began last year after Perez's arrest for stealing the cocaine.

Parks ordered major staffing changes at the Rampart Division and replaced officers suspected of either being involved criminally or in following a ``code of silence'' in not informing on other officers.

No evidence checks

The department also instituted tougher procedures in having officers get evidence, requiring them to show identification cards that are photocopied with detailed information on court cases.

``You had a situation that anyone in a uniform could get evidence,'' one source said. ``Then, no one really checked it when it was returned. There were some cases where drugs were taken out, phony drugs replaced, and then an order was given to destroy it. No one really knows what happened to the drugs.''

Former Police Commission President Edith Perez said she insisted that more controls be put into place following the arrest of Rafael Perez, who is not related to her.

``At first, they thought it was just a handful of officers,'' she said. ``My experience was to multiply it by three, and that's what you would have involved. It was the type of thing where the investigation kept getting larger and larger.''

Gibbons said the District Attorney's Office's Special Investigation Division is working with the LAPD on the inquiry and is expected to look at other cases involving the officers.

City Attorney James Hahn has assigned one of his top attorneys to work with the LAPD to review other prosecutions involving Perez and others implicated in the case to see whether there are problems with other cases.

Police officials said the inquiry will continue to focus on the dozen officers but will not be limited to that.

``We will go all the way up,'' one official said. ``Obviously, there was a problem somewhere, and it could involve some top-ranking department officials.''

Capt. Richard Meraz, who was the captain of patrol and detectives at the Rampart Division during the Perez investigation, said he was sickened to learn of the number of officers involved.

``I've got a big knot in my stomach . . . My reaction was sad, hurt, disillusioned and angry. I don't know whether to cry or throw up,'' said Meraz, now Central Division commanding officer for detectives.

``It's affected the whole department. It's definitely had an impact on me, and I'm second-guessing myself and what I did right and wrong.''

Commission meeting today

Police Commissioner Bert Boeckmann said he expected Parks to provide a full briefing to the commission, possibly as early as today when it meets in Studio City.

``I don't know if this is a situation just at Rampart,'' Boeckmann said. ``What's hard, when you have a department of nearly 10,000 people, you're going to find yourselves with a dozen or so bad apples. I hope people realize what a small number this is and how wonderfully clean the department has been.''

Councilwomen Jackie Goldberg voiced similar thoughts.

``Most of our officers do a wonderful job,'' said Goldberg, in whose district the Rampart Division is located. ``I wouldn't want to see that overlooked.

``No matter how good your department is, you need a strong independent voice,'' Goldberg said. ``That's what the people voted for.''

Staff Writers David R. Baker and Jesse Hiestand contributed to this report.

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Photo: Perez