A Chicago police officer is facing firing and his detective brother has been suspended for six months after an investigation found that one of them used racial slurs and issued a phony distress call while the other pointed a gun at an engine during a bizarre prank.
Officer John Kaporis initially called police to his mother's home on April 21, 2022, after he and his son found two women “cleaning without permission,” according to the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.
When officers arrived, he told them someone was pranking his family “by requesting various services for the home.” He claimed that the house had been robbed. The Cuban agency said in a report that body camera video captured him using racist statements to describe the sanitation workers, who were black.
After the officers left, John Kaporis waited outside for his brother, Detective Christophe Kaporis, who had been called to the house. As John Kaporis was sitting on the front steps, he saw U-Haul trucks stop and then drive off, prompting him to call 911.
When Christophe Capouris arrived and learned what had happened, he went into the backyard while his brother stayed in front, according to the Cuban agency. The U-Haul driver then stopped in the alley, and Christophe Kapouris intercepted a man who was walking toward the truck.
Cuba said Christophe Capouris pulled out a gun and pointed it at the man, who insisted he posed no threat and was just doing his job. It turns out the man and the U-Haul passengers were hired to move the boxes through an online application.
However, Christophe Capouris grabbed the man, pushed him to the ground and put his arms behind his back, according to Cuba. Finally a neighbor came out and started recording on his cell phone.
After the neighbor asked Christophe Kaporis why he pulled his gun and detained the mover, the investigator became angry and encouraged the movers to target the neighbor's house. Christophe Kaporis eventually refused to provide his name or badge number and drove off, COPA said.
Around the same time, John Kaporis heard a noise in the alley and placed a call to the officer in distress, Cuban reported.
Such a call, known as a “10-1,” is the “highest priority dispatch assignment for life-threatening conditions that threaten the safety and well-being of police, emergency medical services, or fire units,” according to police guidance.
John Kaporis said he was trying to get officers to respond quickly, according to COPA. However, the first police officers on the scene quickly clarified that there was no “10-1” emergency.
John Caporis was then told that someone had pointed a gun at one of the movers, who told responding officers why they were there, Cuban said.
John Kaporis said in defense of his brother's actions: “Good, they have every right to protect themselves.”
Later that night, Christophe Kaporis showed up at the Lincoln District Police Station and admitted that he had seized the engine, Cuban reported. He told a sergeant that he pulled his gun and ordered the mover to the ground because he did not have handcuffs.
In January, the Cuba Commission initially found that the Caporis brothers had violated various department rules and recommended that each face a suspension of at least a year and a maximum of dismissal.
In March, Inspector General Deborah Weitzberg's office urged the CPSC to reopen the investigation and look into whether John Kaporis violated an administrative rule barring officers from making false reports, citing the unnecessary “10-1” call.
John Kaporis had previously violated the same rule twice, according to Fitzburg's office. In 2001, he made false statements about his whereabouts while dealing with a person who had filed a complaint.
In 2004, he “filed a false criminal report for forgery, knowing that.”
Before becoming mayor, Lori Lightfoot denounced violations of what she called the “you lie, you die” rule, which earned its name because violations could lead to firing.
But in 2023, Fitzburg's office found that more than 100 current and former Chicago cops were allowed to remain on the force after making false statements.
COPA eventually updated its findings in April to reflect that Kaporis had violated the rule. The change came with a firm recommendation for his dismissal.
In July, police. Larry Snelling agreed with COPA's findings. Snelling said John Kaporis should be terminated, and his brother should be suspended for 180 days.
Meanwhile, John Kaporis was relieved of his police powers and assigned to the Alternative Response Division, a unit staffed by police officers with disciplinary and medical issues.
A police spokesman said Christophe Kaporis remains on active duty in the District 5 detective division.
