HOUSTON -- The News2Houston Investigators reported Wednesday night in an exclusive story that police investigators said it appears city money was used so that officers could put up "No Trespassing" signs up themselves, making arrests seem more legitimate during a parking lot raid.

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The Houston Police Department's Crime Scene Unit that normally gathers evidence at murders and other major crimes was hard at work Wednesday, surveying the parking lot of Kmart department store, located in the 8400 block of Westheimer Road, in southwest Houston.

Some of the signs still remain on the scene and even bear the initials "HPD" on them, an offensive thought to those caught in the sting.

"We sat there until 4:30 in the morning handcuffed out on the parking lot," said Justin Esparza, who was arrested in the operation. " It's just terrible what they did."

"I feel like it's a case of entrapment," Esparza's mother, Leanne Williams, said.

Williams said that she is angry at the notion of police placing the signs, because otherwise, no one was ever warned that they could be trespassing.

"They need to be held accountable for their actions," Williams said.

Police supervisors, from sergeants up to an assistant chief, have received notices that they're under internal investigation, possibly facing a reprimand or suspension.

Also, the first grand jury subpoenas have gone out.

Meantime, the Harris County District Attorney's office has formally requested from HPD a full accounting of any city funds used to buy the "No Trespassing" signs.

Police usually only enforce signs that business owners put up.

"Is it normal that the owners put up the signs or was it signs put up by the police officers? That's a fact that we're going to try to determine." said Tommy LaFon, assistant district attorney."

But LaFon said that supervisors and any street officers, who arrested innocent people, could face charges, even if they were just following orders to arrest everyone.

"I would expect that any officer being given an order that's a clear violation of the law would not carry out that, and identify it as such," LaFon said.

News2Houston Investigators said that HPD is not answering their questions about whether department money was used to purchase the signs.

The D.A.'s office said that the 55 officers involved in the raid will be questioned as part of the criminal case, and that many will be given subpoenas to testify before a grand jury in the coming months.