A former D.C. police officer was convicted of illegally exchanging confidential information from traffic accident reports in exchange for cash, prosecutors announced Thursday.
A federal jury found 35-year-old Vincent Forrest, of D.C., guilty of conspiracy, bribery and making false statements.
Forrest and 43-year-old Raquel DePaula, of Beltsville, Maryland, were indicted in 2021 in a scheme that involved DePaula paying Forrest cash in return for the names and contact information of those recently involved in crashes, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for D.C.
Prosecutors said Forrest used his official access to D.C. police’s law enforcement sensitive database to get victim contact information from traffic accident reports. Forrest would then send the information to DePaula using the encrypted messaging app “WhatsApp,” according to the attorney’s office.
DePaula, who owned RD Legal Solutions, LLC, acted as a “runner,” prosecutors said, using the contact information to solicit for attorneys in exchange for referral fees.
The scheme started in April 2019, according to the attorney’s office. Forrest would meet up with DePaula at various locations in D.C. and Maryland to accept cash from her, and DePaula has admitted to paying him between $600 and $1,300 per week in exchange for the contact information, prosecutors said.
Evidence shown at Forrest’s trial indicated that over the course of the scheme, DePaula paid Forrest more than $15,000 in exchange for the contact information of 2,316 crash victims.
DePaula pleaded guilty months after the indictment. She’s scheduled to be sentenced March 15, and faces a likely range of 18 to 24 months in prison.
Forrest is expected to be sentenced on June 7.
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