A longtime Detroit fire dispatcher is accused of tipping off family members about an impending federal search warrant and then lying to investigators who questioned her about it, according to a criminal complaint filed Sept. 28 in federal court.
Stephanie Steen, a former lieutenant and dispatcher with the Detroit Fire Department, allegedly learned of the operation after a call-for-service related to the search warrant was entered into a Detroit police dispatch system. The police and fire departments share a dispatch center at Detroit Public Safety Headquarters.
Steen is charged with making false statements to a federal agency, a crime punishable by up to five years in prison. The complaint alleges she falsely denied knowing about the March 2025
federal search before it occurred and falsely claimed the dispatch-system username that viewed the raid entry – “STEENS121” – was not hers.
In a statement Sept. 29, the Detroit Fire Department said it was aware of the criminal complaint and that Steen retired from the department in March.
“The department fully cooperated with the federal investigation and provided all requested assistance,” the fire department said. “As this is an ongoing criminal case, we defer any further comment to the investigating agency.”
The Free Press could not immediately reach Steen for comment Sept. 29.
The complaint stems from a broader federal investigation into unemployment insurance fraud and bribery.
Agents executed several search warrants across metro Detroit on March 5, 2025, including at a home on Turner Street in Detroit where a subject of the investigation, identified in court records as C.B., lived.
The search was scheduled for 4 a.m. But before agents arrived, occupants of the home had apparently been warned that law enforcement was coming, according to the complaint.
Agents involved in the operation reported that lights were on and people inside were awake and moving around before the warrant was executed.
FBI agents also discovered a series of messages posted shortly before the search on C.B.’s publicly viewable Facebook page, the complaint says.
At 3:41 a.m., C.B. wrote: “I’m setting up traps now so if anyone comes in this house unannounced that’s on them.” One minute later, he wrote, “I’m up I’ll be waiting.” At 3:49 a.m., he added: “Move everything now you have 41 minutes everyone.”
In an alleged Facebook Messenger exchange, C.B. told another person: “They bout to raid my house at 4:30 bro.”
According to the complaint, a Detroit Police Department call-for-service entry was created at 3:10 a.m. to arrange for a marked police car to assist with the federal search. Minutes later, Steen’s username was used to view the entry.
Steen was working an overnight shift at the shared police and fire dispatch center at the time, according to the complaint. Phone records also showed a series of calls and texts from Steen to her mother, identified as C.S., who lived at the Turner Street home with C.B.
Beginning at approximately 3:23 a.m., Steen allegedly texted her mother about the operation, writing, “It suppose to start at 430,” and later, “The police will be there at 430.” When her mother asked whether police would knock down the door, Steen allegedly responded, “Yes."
“Don’t tell them I told you,” Steen allegedly added.
During a Jan. 30 interview with federal agents investigating the alleged leak, Steen said she did not learn about the search warrant until after she got off work that day, according to the complaint.
When agents presented Steen with dispatch records showing that STEENS121 had viewed the call-for-service entry, she allegedly denied the username belonged to her and claimed other employees named Steen had access to the dispatch system.
Detroit police officials later confirmed that the username was assigned to Steen and that no other communications division or Detroit fire staff had the last name Steen or Stein, according to the complaint.
Violet Ikonomova is an investigative reporter at the Free Press. Contact her at vikonomova@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit dispatcher accused of warning family about FBI raid
