Before we jump in, I want to give you a heads up. The following episode contains content about rape, assault and police brutality. This episode is recommended for mature audiences. It's been over two years since former Kansas City Kansas Police Detective Roger galoobski was arrested on charges of using his position to kidnap and rape vulnerable black women. These instances date back to the 1990s he's 71 years old, now on dialysis and has been allowed to stay at home for health reasons, after some delays. His trial date is officially set for December. 2 case you are podcast overlooked, led by investigative reporter Peggy Lowe, went in depth on galoupski passed in charges with galoupski is upcoming trial overlooked has started a special second season. Peggy, thank you for being here.
Thank you, Grace,
Peggy, you've been covering go loop ski for a long time. In 2017 Lamont McIntyre was exonerated after he'd spent years in prison due to go loop skis investigation, which subsequently put the investigation under scrutiny. What role did galoupski play in getting McIntyre wrongfully accused.
That's a great place to start it out grace, because then we can kind of chronologically tell this, you know, complicated story that date back, dates back decades. So Lamont McIntyre was arrested by Galoob ski back in 1994 for a double murder that ultimately we learned he did not commit and essentially that all of Galois keys actions really came to light through Lamont case, through first his exoneration, and then a civil suit that he brought against the police department and the unified government of Wyandotte County. So go loop ski is accused of railroading a young, 16 year old Lamont McIntyre into getting convicted on this double murder. He had help with a local prosecutor too. But then what was so interesting is the investigator who looked at Lamont case. His name is Jim McCloskey, and he started really doing the first exonerations in the US, and he's considered the godfather of exonerations. And he just, for instance, published a book with John Grisham. So anyone who he was the guy who really found go loop ski from the get go, and showed that he had this mo essentially, of victimizing vulnerable black women, women who were often sex workers or drug addicted. And not only would he abuse them sexually, he would also oftentimes use them as what he called confidential informants. He would tell them what to say, and then he could clear his cases rather quickly, it turns out, and those cases could go the way he wanted. So that's when it all really came to light about Roger golubski, you know, outside of the KC K community.
So after McIntyre was released from prison, multiple women came forward with those rape and sexual assault allegations against galupsky. So when did these instances start, and how have they gotten him to the charges that he'll be on trial for in December? So
the ones we know about started in the 90s, but go loop ski was such. I think his his idea of policing started really early on. So he graduated from the police academy in 1975 and by 1978 he was already being investigated for beating a man to death in the city jail. So we don't know about any of his victims even dating back that far. I you know a lot of people say, I'm sure there are those. So by the 90s, though, he is found to have basically any time he met what he considered an attractive black woman, he would his line was, usually, do you date white men, which I guess he thought was charming, oddly enough, and then he would approach women who are witnesses in cases, who potentially were victims, were mothers of victims, mother of defendants, and say he would help them. That's what he would suggest to them. I will help you. You know, if you go along with what I want, and what he wanted was sex most of the time. One of the women that we'll talk about in the future that happened to back in the 90s. Her name is Ophelia Williams, and her twin sons had been arrested for a double murder back then, and that's what Roger galusky did. He came to her and he said, Hey, I drink with the DA you know, I'll help you out with your kid's case. Well, actually, all he did was come back and rape her each time that he did that. So that's how it all started. So
go loop ski was married to a black woman in the 90s, and in season one of overlooked Peggy had an interview with her. What was her experience with him as a husband?
So go loop skis whole relationship with women. Is so fascinating. And we did do a deep dive into this in overlooked so he was married to several women, and one of them was Ethel Abbott. I knocked on her door one afternoon, and she let me in, and we talked about her relationship with him, and it was right out of the galoobski playbook. You know, she worked at a convenience market that had been, you know, like burglarized or something, a crime had occurred there, and he wanted her to say what he wanted her to say about what happened at at the this event. She didn't even witness the event anyway. He just kept bugging her and bugging her and bugging her, and she would never say, you know, what he wanted her to say. But that must have made him respect her, because they got married, and for a while, he had really kind of a family life with Ethel, and she had a good life with him, and but eventually his true colors started to show. He admitted his father was racist. His mother was very racist to Ethel, and then ultimately, she caught him, once again, with women in the street, you know, with some of the drug the drug addicted, and some of the sex workers. So one of her best tales, though, and this could go to why galups always picked on black women, other than the fact that, of course, they probably have the least amount of power in our society. He told her during pillow talk one night, she said, so what is it with you and black women? And he said, they're uneducated. So that's golib skis thinking, right there.
Do we know how Ethel feels about the charges that he's facing and the trial that he'll go on.
Yeah, so she was the one that basically confirmed from early on that the FBI was investigating. And she told me a story about how the FBI came to her home, showed her their entire book, all these alleged victims, and she said to him, it's about time this guy's been doing this for decades, you know, and homicide means nothing to him. He was a homicide cop, So where have you been and why haven't you done something sooner? That's pretty much what she felt about it.
Golubski faces a separate set of charges that he was paid to protect sex traffickers during the same period as his rape and kidnapping charges, Cecil a Brooks, one of the traffickers who allegedly paid Galoob paid a 15 year old to commit the murders that golubski later penned on McIntyre. What was the relationship between golubski and Brooks, and how does it relate to golubski and the Casey K PDS, larger history of corruption?
So you're absolutely right. Grace, so there's a second case that Galoob was charged in, namely that he protected Cecil Brooks, a notorious drug dealer, in case, Ck, one of the most violent, that he protected Cecil's sex trafficking ring of underage girls, and that he even partook of some of these underage girls. So, and as you mentioned, too, Cecil was the one who allegedly ordered the double homicide that Lamont McIntyre, you know, went down for. So apparently they were businessmen together. You know, golubski protected Cecil's operations, drug and or sex, and for that, he was paid cash, and he partook of the many women in Cecil's orbit. It was all run out of an apartment complex in KC, K so that case is not part of what we're going to be seeing at the trial that starts in December, but that case is set for trial in 2025
so the FBI has been investigating corruption within the KC, kpd, for decades, but prosecution of these bad actors is pretty rare. Galoupski is trial has been delayed multiple times. So why did it take so long for go loop ski first to be caught and now, why is it taking him so long to actually get on trial?
That's the ultimate question. You know. Of this entire case, I was just talking to some police accountability experts in preparation for the trial, and they said they hope that that's what people really ask, you know? And they said there should be shame on the department for looking other the other way, because all other police officers told us everybody knew what was going on with golubski. Everybody knew he had a thing for black women. Everybody knew he was abusing them, and leadership in the brass look the other way. Then the FBI did investigate in the 90s, and we have those documents through a federal Freedom of Information Act request. And they wrote about widespread corruption, widespread violation of the civil rights of the black community, and KC, K and no one did anything about it. And. Police Accountability experts told me, Look at that. You know that shows priorities of law enforcement. That shows that their priorities are certainly not the most vulnerable members of society that they are sworn to protect. This is not a news story, they said to me, but it's a rather common one and more of this kind of things should be brought to light.
You mentioned that document from the 90s with over 200 instances of just civil rights violations, specifically against black folk and Casey K What are some of those other examples? Because galupsky wasn't alone in this.
No, basically, a lot of the officers had their own criminal enterprises. You know, they either sold drugs or they were great thieves, and then they would pawn all the stuff. They beat people in the city jail. They humiliated people, even black children. The list of potential crimes is a long one, and and it's an appalling one, and it reflects what really everybody knew when I first got here. Everybody said, yeah, the KCK Police Department is notoriously corrupt, and those documents prove that.
Do you think that go loop skis, upcoming trial will empower people who were hurt by these KCK Police Department folks in the past to come forward again, I
would certainly hope so that said I would understand why they don't. Because, you know, for instance, some of the victims have told me, you know, when they when they would when Roger golubski would rape them or abuse them, they'd say, I'm going to the police. And he would say, I am the Police. You know, they didn't have any hope that anything would ever be done about these crimes, even if they reported them. And they were very scared. You know, he always he had a way of getting to know them, enough that he would threaten to kill whoever they cared a lot about. For instance, one of his victims named in the indictment was a 13 year old girl, and he knew she was tight with her grandmother, and he said, if you tell anybody about this, I'll go kill your grandmother. So they're scared. You know, it's a very scary proposition to come out against a police officer. So while, as I said, I hope that this will empower people to do it. I don't know that it will. And there is, you know, the accusations are sold, and a lot of the evidence is gone, and so these are very hard cases to bring. Okay, so
the document you were referencing was from the early 90s. How many of those officers are still working with the KC, kpd, and how many of them are new recruits? Well,
that's kind of what the like the press people and the chief of the KC K police like to say right now. Last time I talked to her for a story about this, the Nancy Chartrand, who is the PIO for the KC K Police Department, said, like, only a dozen guys still are around from those days, and so they feel like they're they have cleaned up the department, and it's being run better. I know that Chief Carl Oakman is very respected, but there's a real reluctance on his part, on anybody's part, in KC, K to actually answer for these, you know, answer for these past abuses and and help the current victims who are still suffering from massive PTSD. So yeah, I think a lot of them are gone that said they probably still have a ways to clean up.
So when they say that they've cleaned up the department, it's been quite a few years since these instances occurred. What do they mean by that? What? What types of cleaning up? Well,
they say that there's been a lot of police reform just nationally. You know, after the Rodney King thing, after the George Floyd thing, they say that their i A Internal Affairs departments are tougher. They say there's a lot more discipline. They say they're they don't put up with all the shenanigans that happened in the past, whether that was thievery, drugs, abusing women, that they just won't stand for that anymore. So those are kind of some of the things that they've mentioned. So
a lot of these instances that we're talking about happened in the 90s, so it's been quite some time since they occurred. So what all will the prosecution need to prove for golubski to be found guilty with no room for disbelief? And how hard will that be? I
do think it's going to be hard for many reasons. You're right. The allegations are old. In many instances, there wasn't a lot of evidence about it, because women didn't report it to police, for instance, because they were too scared and they knew that they would probably be, you know, a threatened or B, something would actually happen. So, so there's that part, but in a pretty major victory for the prosecution, last March, the judge allowed the use of seven other victims to. Who basically shore up the accusations of the two women who were mentioned in the indictment. So basically they are showing that there was a pattern that golubski went by, a blueprint of sorts, how he used the power of his badge to abuse these women who were in very vulnerable positions, and that's how he got his way. So if nine women are saying a lot of the same things, that's basically what the prosecution is going to be laying their case at. So on the flip side, though, you know, Roger golovsky's lawyer says, Hey, this is he said. She said, these are very old. Are you going to believe these women, and now they suggest too, since Lamont McIntyre won a $12.5 million civil suit, they have suggested that many of these women are just in it for the money. So it's, it's that? Pretty classic, he said. She said, rape case, right there.
So there are two named women in the indictments. We have s, k and O, W, so what are they going to go on the stand and testify? Well, affiliate
Williams, who I mentioned before, you know, has her twin sons who he said he would protect. They're still in jail and so in prison for a long time. So Ophelia just tells a terrible tale of how he abused her, and she always felt that his gun was nearby when he would rape her, so she felt that threat certainly. Now Ophelia allows herself to be named. I had asked her permission the first time I met her the day he was arrested, because she is O, W in the indictment, the other one is s, k, and she was 13 when Galoob ski first started abusing her. And pardon me that that tale is particularly horrifying. He really, you know, he found her at a school. He knew she was a foster kid. He just started raping her right away. He would threaten her, not just with her grandmother's life, but her own. He would take her to the graveyard and say, you will land here. He took her to the river and said, This is where I dumped my bodies. You will be next, you know. So she, she was absolutely she lived in terror for her teen years. It was pretty bad. So that's what s, K, N, O, W will be testifying to So
how do these women who are coming forward and even testifying, how do they feel about this and all the delayed motions that have allowed galupsky to basically just be at home for the last two years? How are they feeling about that
very, very, very angry, very frustrated. Ophelia comes to every single hearing. She has just been a trooper, and they say, you know, if this was a black guy or even a black officer, he would not be allowed on home detention, he would not be allowed to sleep in his own bed every night, and they're very bitter about it. Then that it took two years, mostly by continuances from Galoob skis camp, because they had to get a lot of evidence and then get it redacted. So there's still, while people are happy about his arrest, certainly there's still a lot of anger in the community. Basically, a bunch of social activists are organizing a bus that will leave KC, K at 8am that day, and then there'll be a rally. Basically, it's called, like, you know, a rally for justice for women in front of the courthouse that day. So still, a lot of pent up passion
has Lamont McIntyre came forward with any statements about this trial.
He was in court two years ago, the day that the federal magistrate allowed Roger golubs to get out on home detention. And Lamont is a pretty steady guy. He has found spirituality and in prison, and he's very healthy. And that day, he lost it. I was sitting near him in the courtroom, and he jumped up when the judge made her decision. He bolted from the courtroom, and he went out. There were reporters outside, and he said they showed mercy to this guy. You know, he didn't show mercy to anyone, including Lamont zone mother who golubski hit on and he said, it's just appalling, you know, like if you're in the system, if you're in the white law enforcement system, you'll be protected, but if you're a guy like me, you know, a young black kid, I'm not protected. So he and he has also come and he has spoken at some of the social justice activities like Team rock, Jay Z's philanthropic arm, have been involved in this case, and they have had a couple of rallies here in the Kansas City area, and he spoke at one of those, and he thanked his hometown for being behind him and for all the social activists who have you know supported him.
Yeah. So you mentioned Jay Z is involved in this that's a pretty big name, a pretty national name. What kind of national attention has this case received? And how is it echoed throughout the whole country?
It's received a lot of national attention. CNN has been on it. NBC has been on it. It's just such a remarkable case, you know, and so obviously, this guy was caught, and he had so many victims, they can prove this pattern. So it's garnered a lot of attention so and we did a podcast about it. It was on the NPR network. There's a great deal of attention around it. There has been a motion filed by Team rocks lawyers who I talked to this week, they would like cameras in the courtroom. Now, federal courts never do that, but they are trying to get some sort of, you know, way for the public to watch. It's kind of a schlep to Topeka every time, you know, it takes me about an hour and a half to get there, and they would like to have some sort of feed, whether that be audio or video, that they could listen to. I highly doubt that's going to happen, but they're trying. So
like I said, you've been covering him for forever, and what was your first inkling that there's something much bigger when it comes to golubski? Why did you decide to really give your all to this?
Our origin story on the podcast is, um, we when Lamont was exonerated in 2017 we hadn't been covering the case, but it was so remarkable. We had him come in, and he was on one of our local talk shows in the days of his release, and he came in with his mom and his lawyer, and so I started covering it that week, but just dribs and drabs, here's and there Steve Kraske, who is one of our local talk show hosts and a long time Kansas City Star reporter. He was talking to one of his sources in KC, K A woman named Janice Witt, who knows everyone over there. She runs a food bank, and she said, You guys need to look at this. You know, it's not just Lamont. He's just one guy that golubski victimized. There's all these women. There's all these other cases. You know, Lamont says that there are, there were like eight guys, nine guys in jail with him, in prison with him, who go loop ski had set up, or at least that's how they feel. So Steve came back to the newsroom one afternoon. He was very excited about it. He talked to our editor, and he talked her into, you know, doing this podcast. So we started the podcast. Gosh, it was like in the middle of the pandemic, I think is when we started really looking at it.
Go loop ski has tons of victims who aren't named in this case and aren't coming forward, and there's a multitude of people who are just impacted by the pure racism behind this and the deeply rooted sexism. So how has both go loop skis actions in the past and the fact that he's finally going on trial impacted the Kansas City, Kansas community's view on the justice system,
I would suggest it's it's really cut into two camps. There's the black community's reaction, there's the white community's reaction, that the black community is like, It's about damn time. And finally, and this is the tip of the iceberg. I hear that all the time, that it's not just golubski, who was a dirty cop back in the day. So I also think they're rather wary of whether or not he will get convicted. You know, when he was allowed out on home detention, so many people were anchored by that. You know, it just wasn't fair. So people are wary and and still angry on the on the black community side, on the white community side, I can't get people to talk to me about it. They don't want to talk about it. It's a shameful past, right? And they don't want to be tarred with that old brush anymore that they had a corrupt police department, um, and it's almost like they, they, it's like they're embarrassed by it, right? That said so many of the people back then who are in law enforcement are still involved in the case in a way. For instance, a former KC K police chief is now the head of the US Marshals Service, the Federal US Marshals Service. A guy named Alvie, who was a federal investigator back in the day, is now working as a private investigator for golubski camp. His brother used to be mayor. So, you know, it's such a small insular town that they don't really want to talk about a guy named Marja golubski. It's a very dirty past.
So the whole KC, kpd has this history. Have any of galooski his coworkers? I know you mentioned this briefly earlier, but have there been any other ones who have not just spoken to you, but maybe to law enforcement, and who you can expect to see on trial testifying against golubski? Yeah.
I don't know that any officers have been called to testify so far. His former partner, his name is Terry Ziegler, and he was a former police chief too. He was interviewed by CNN, and I know that he had to testify before the grand jury, which is secret. He has just said I didn't know anything. Nobody knows anything. All of a sudden, all these years later, and he said golubski was a very secretive guy. I don't know what he was up to other police officers. There's one in particular who has spoken out for years. His name is Max Seifert, and he's a pretty remarkable guy. He was a very clean cop, and he tried to bring these abuses to light. And he was, he was really bullied by the rest of the police force, so I don't know if they'll be putting anybody on this stand. I haven't seen their witness list.
And how long is this trial expected to take, and what's the maximum sentence that he could face?
He faces life in prison if convicted on these six counts, and it starts December 2. It's supposed to run through at least January 15. It's a 17 day schedule. But here's why it's weird. We're only going to be in court on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, because on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Roger golubski needs dialysis. So he's a very sick guy. Apparently, has renal failure, diabetes, heart problems, so it's going to be just three days a week, so it's going to take a lot longer than it normally would. And It really pains me knowing many of the victims that they have to go through this at Christmas time, over the holidays, you know, it'll so it'll go the whole month of December. It'll break, and then we'll go back in January. And I just thought, really, you know, you took two years to bring this finally to trial, and now you're going to do it over Christmas. It feels, it feels very hard for everyone involved. Yeah.
So there have been some feelings going around in the KCK community that he might pass away before receiving a sentence or going to trial for the second set of charges with the sex trafficking. So how are his victims feeling about that? A
lot of people are surprised. He's still alive and he's still coming to court for all these hearings, and you know, there's no way to determine that. You know, I'm not his doctor. You know, his lawyers talk about that a lot, how sick he is and how he needs all this treatment, and how he couldn't possibly be in prison because they wouldn't get the right insulin and the right drugs to him. So it's anybody's guess if Roger galusky will survive this. Peggy,
thank you for reporting and thank you for being here. Thank you, Grace. You can listen to the second season of overlooked wherever you get podcasts and on the case who are and Kansas reflector websites for the Kansas reflector, I'm Grace holes. Thank you for listening.
