BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Nine current and former Boston Police officers were arrested Wednesday morning and charged in connection with the overtime fraud scandal at the Boston Police Department.
According to BPD, the arrests were made after an investigation by Boston Police Department’s Anti-Corruption Unit uncovered the alleged payroll/overtime abuse by officers assigned to the Evidence Management Unit.
The defendants, who are scheduled to make initial videoconference appearances in Boston federal court later today, were identified as Lieutenant Timothy Torigian, 54, of Walpole; Sergeant Gerard O’Brien (retired), 62, of Braintree; Sergeant Robert Twitchell (retired), 58, of Norton; Officer Henry Doherty (retired), 61, of Dorchester; Officer Diana Lopez (retired), 58, of Milton; Officer James Carnes (retired), 57, of Canton; Officer Michael Murphy, 60, of Hyde Park; Officer Ronald Nelson (retired), 60, of Jamaica Plain; and Officer Kendra Conway, 49, of Boston.
Each defendant is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit theft concerning programs receiving federal funds, and one count of embezzlement from an agency receiving federal funds.
According to U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling's indictment, the defendants were assigned to Boston Police Department’s Evidence Control Unit (ECU), where they were responsible for, "among other things, storing, cataloging and retrieving evidence at the warehouse."
Lelling said ECU officers were eligible to earn overtime pay of 1.5 times their regular hourly pay rate for overtime assignments. However, the indictment alleges that beginning in at least May 2016, the defendants routinely departed overtime shifts two or more hours early, but submitted false and fraudulent overtime slips claiming to have worked the entirety of each shift.
Between May 2016 and February 2019, the defendants allegedly collectively embezzled over $200,000 in overtime pay. The officers who are not already retired have been suspended without pay.
“The allegations and behavior alleged in today’s indictments is very troubling and in no way reflect the attitudes of the hard-working employees of the Boston Police Department," BPD Commissioner William Gross said. "I hold my officers to the highest standards and expect them to obey all the laws that they have taken an oath to uphold. News of these indictments send a strong message that this type of behavior will not be tolerated or ignored and can damage the trust my officers have worked so hard to build with the communities we serve.”
Follow WBZ NewsRadio: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | iHeartmedia App
(Photo: WBZ NewsRadio)