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Oct. 9 (UPI) -- The city of Chicago on Wednesday released an internal report investigating police personnel involved in covering up the 2014 police shooting that killed Laquan McDonald. The report by Chicago Inspector General Joseph Ferguson, which had been kept confidential for three years, showed multiple officers committed ethical and internal violations to cover up former officer Jason Van Dyke's shooting of the 17-year-old McDonald.
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According to the report, former Chicago police Lt. Anthony Wojick improperly disposed of three progress reports containing three witness statements and then "personally recreated the reports."
The report also stated at least two officers who were not fired falsely claimed they heard Van Dyke tell McDonald to drop a small weapon he was holding and that McDonald ignored his commands.
The officers in question would not have been able to hear any interaction between Van Dyke and McDonald from where they were standing, the report said.
It added that the officers made the false statements in order to "mischaracterize the events leading up to the McDonald shooting and to thereby bolster a false narrative which might offer justification for the shooting."
Additionally, four officers at the scene the night of the shooting failed to visually and audibly record the events with in-car video systems and withheld shield video evidence.
The release marks the first time the city's Law Department has made reports from the investigation publicly available.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot passed a measure in the City Council last month to grant her corporation counsel authority to decide whether to release inspector general investigations for cases involving death or possible felony that is of a "compelling public interest."
Van Dyke was sentenced to 81 months in prison after being convicted of second-degree murder in the shooting while three other Chicago police officers were acquitted on charges they conspired to protect Van Dyke in the case
