Naperville Man Says Police Have Pulled Him Over More Than 200 Times
(CBS) -- Naperville police have launched a formal investigation into the conduct of two officers at the scene of a traffic stop involving a local liquor store owner who says he's been harassed by police for decades, reports WBBM's Mike Krauser.
Basim Esmail's problems with Naperville date back more than 20 years when he was denied a liquor license. He took out 129 full-page newspaper ads under the headline "Napergate," and fought in court and won.
"Very, very hard to fight city hall but you can fight them and beat them if you are persistent, but there is a price to pay," Esmail said. "The police department will harass you the rest of your life."
Esmail claims over the years he has been pulled over more than 200 times, most recently for a broken headlight.
"And the senior officer says, 'Write him' and the junior officer kind of laughs a little bit and the senior officer says, 'Absolutely' and then the senior officer yells, 'Do you know who that is?'"
That is on police video that is missing a portion of its audio.
The Naperville police chief denies they are targeting Esmail and disputes the number of times he has been pulled over.