police officers of Armenian descent filed suit in federal court alleging their department discriminates against them and the Armenian community.

The five officers, who cumulatively have worked 40 years for the Glendale Police Department, allege in their complaint continuous discriminatory and abusive practices against them and the local general public, the Los Angeles Daily News reported Tuesday.

“That a police department in the heart of this Armenian community employs only 15 Armenian officers out of its approximate 270 person workforce is statistically outrageous. The odds that this occurred without any discriminatory intent is statistically impossible,” the officers’ attorney, Carney Shegerian, said.

Glendale’s population is around 198,000, roughly half of which is comprised of people of Armenian descent, the lawyer said.

Allegations also included failure to promote within the police force, retaliation when officers spoke up against the discriminatory practices and over-charging of Armenian suspects, records show.

The officers said non-Armenian officers have made many derogatory comments about Armenians and the Armenian community.

The Glendale City Attorneys office has not yet commented on the matter, the newspaper said