A second of two Department of Homeland Security special agents in Utah has been charged with selling drugs to dealers.
Nicholas Kindle has been accused of selling seized drugs along with David Cole, who had been previously accused of conspiracy to distribute and possess drugs with intent to distribute.
According to the federal court documents, “Kindle and Cole used their positions as special agents to wrongfully obtain illegal narcotics seized by the Department of Homeland Security and other law enforcement agencies and then sold the illegal narcotics to drug dealers … for their own personal enrichment.”
Previous court documents from mid-December initially alleged the two Homeland Security special agents (Kindle unnamed at the time) acquired bath salts by claiming they would use them to conduct Homeland Security investigations.
However, the document stated the two profited hundreds of thousands of dollars via illegal drug sales.
Charging documents also alleged that Kindle and Cole allowed a confidential informant to purchase the drugs, resell them, and then keep the money. The informant and his attorney had contacted the U.S. Attorney’s Office regarding illegal drug sales, which triggered an investigation by the FBI. The informant kept tabs on the two special agents and their illegal activity throughout the investigation.
“According to (the informant), Cole and Kindle never arrested any of the individuals to whom (the informant) sold the bath salts, nor did Cole and Kindle provide (the informant) with recording devices or other equipment to aid in gathering evidence of those involved in the illegal drug purchases,” the documents state.
New charges also claimed that “on at least three occasions, Cole and Kindle stole evidence that was meant to be seized by Homeland Security as part of legitimate Homeland Security investigations. This theft included thousands of dollars in cash, a diamond ring, and a Peruvian antiquity.”
This occurred between the years of 2021 and 2024, the documents state.
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