Former Klamath Falls police officer pleads guilty to stealing drugs from evidence room

Published 2:24 pm Wednesday, August 25, 2021

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A former Klamath Falls police officer pleaded guilty in federal court Tuesday to stealing methamphetamine and fentanyl from an evidence room, federal prosecutors said.

Thomas Dwayne Reif, now 28, took the drugs from another Klamath Falls officer’s secured evidence locker Nov. 27, 2020, according to court documents.

Reif overdosed while driving his police car later that day — crossing a median, driving into oncoming traffic and causing a multi-car crash, according to prosecutors.

He was taken to a hospital, where medical personnel revived him. Toxicology reports showed he was under the influence of methamphetamine and fentanyl, according to court documents.

Investigators also found a bag with methamphetamine in Reif’s personal locker at the police department, court documents said.

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A federal grand jury in Medford indicted Reif this spring on two counts of possession of a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception or subterfuge.

He pleaded guilty to the charges Monday and faces a maximum sentence of four years in prison, a $250,000 fine and one year of supervised release.

Reif is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 23.

He was hired as a Klamath Falls police officer in December 2014 and fired Dec. 1, 2020, according to state records.

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