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BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Former Boston Police officer Craig Smalls has been charged in connection with the ongoing investigation in an overtime scandal within the department.
Smalls, 55, of Roxbury, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit theft concerning programs receiving federal funds and one count of embezzlement from an agency receiving federal funds
Between at least March 2015 until September 2016, he agreed that he submitted false and fraudulent overtime hours.
"The first, called “purge” overtime, was a 4 – 8 p.m. weekday shift intended to dispose of old, unneeded evidence," the U.S. Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell stated. "The second shift, called “kiosk” overtime, involved driving to each police district in Boston one Saturday a month to collect old prescription drugs to be burned."
Smalls admitted to leaving the 4 p.m.-8 p.m. shift routinely at or before 6 p.m. For the "kiosk" shift, he would only work around three-to-four hours instead of his logged eight-and-a-half hours.
Between the two overtime shift types, Smalls personally collected approximately $16,252 for overtime hours he did not work."
On Thursday, former Sgt. Gerard O’Brien, 62, of Braintree pleaded guilty for committing over $25,000 for warehouse overtime fraud, according to prosecutors.
According to Massachusetts Acting U.S. Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell, the scheme of "purge" overtime occurred between March of 2015 to February of 2019.
In September 2020, nine Boston Police officers were arrested in their role in the overtime fraud scheme; allegedly collecting over $250,000.
WBZ NewsRadio's Art Cohen reports:
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