Houston police Officer Traci Michelle Tennarse and her boyfriend used $17,000 they got from a police informant to buy 50 pounds of marijuana, assistant Harris County District Attorney .
Tennarse was arrested Wednesday after she carried the marijuana to the second floor of an East Freeway motel and handed it to the informant, Emmons said.
The arrest followed an investigation that dates back to October, but Emmons declined to say today whether officials believe Tennarse and boyfriend Clarence Davis, 48, have been trafficking in marijuana for a long time.
Tennarse, 29, a three-year HPD officer, could not be reached for comment today. She was released from the Harris County Jail Wednesday after posting a $34,000 bond on a charge of delivery of marijuana.
Davis and another woman, Schangua "Britney" Jackson, 19, also were charged with marijuana delivery, Emmons said. Jackson was with Tennarse and Davis during the marijuana delivery but her connection to the couple, who lived together in a home in Spring owned by Tennarse, was not clear, Emmons said.
Tennarse worked at HPD headquarters on Travis in downtown Houston.
Tennarse first traveled to the La Quinta in the 11900 block of East Freeway after she got off work Wednesday, Emmons said.
She traveled to the motel in a car she rented, Emmons said.
Emmons her office, HPD's Internal Affairs Division and HPD narcotics investigators were involved in the sting operation.
Tennarse was arrested at the motel shortly before 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Tennarse was sworn in as police officer officer in January 2006. She worked at a desk job that involved checking finger print records of people processed through the city jail, police said.
Tennarse was scheduled to make an initial appearance in the Harris County 174th District Court but her formal arraignment was delayed until Feb. 8, Emmons said.
Tennarse has been suspended with pay pending while the investigation continues.
Tennarse has a MySpace page on which she describes herself as a police officer who makes more than $60,000 a year, a 2003 graduate of Texas Southern University and a 1996 graduate of Aldine High School.
Tennarse lists herself as having received a bachelor's degree from TSU in criminal justice.
TSU registrar Marilynn Square confirmed today that Tennarse graduated with a degree in administration of justice in May 2003.
Tennarse lives in a $140,000 home in Spring, according to public records.