Today, a Prince George’s County grand jury
indicted 13 current Prince George’s County Police officers and one recently
retired police officer on misconduct in office as well as felony and
misdemeanor theft charges.
The officers are accused of working secondary
employment positions with a private security company while also on-duty with
the police department. The company provided security at more than 20 apartment
complexes in the county. The officers are also accused of providing false
information to the apartment complexes to justify the continued hiring of the
security company.
The misconduct in office is alleged to have
taken place between January 2019 to March 2021.
In February 2021, the Prince George’s County
Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division received an internal complaint
regarding potential wrongdoing by several of the involved officers. The
Internal Affairs Division opened an extensive investigation into the
allegations and identified additional officers who could potentially be
involved. As the investigation progressed, the police powers of the involved officers
were suspended beginning in April 2021. All of the involved officers were
assigned to the Special Assignment Teams of Landover III and Westphalia VIII
Patrol Divisions, which were proactive saturation teams under the Bureau of
Patrol.
“This is truly a
disheartening day for the men and women who represent the very best of the
Prince George’s County Police Department. All people, including officers,
retain the right of due process under the law, yet the allegations on this
large group of officers are deeply troubling. If the allegations are proven
true during the judicial process, their actions not only tarnish the badge we
all wear proudly, but also erode the community’s trust. I want to stress to our
supportive community that this investigation originated within our agency.
Whenever we become aware of potential misconduct, we thoroughly investigate and
if needed, we deliver the case to the States’ Attorney’s Office for possible
criminal charges. That’s exactly what happened in this situation. We remain on
a road to restore our noble and trusted police brand that offers a professional
police service to our community. We have implemented a philosophy of trust,
fairness, and equity that our residents demand and deserve. Our officers are
striving to be the epitome of 21st Century Policing in this modern
police era of positive reformation. I remain proud to be the lead
representative for the dedicated men and women who serve our residents above
reproach,” said Police Chief Malik Aziz.
Starting in July of
2021, the Prince George’s County Police Department began implementing changes
to the department’s secondary employment policy to include:
- Employees
are prohibited from engaging in the business of providing security guards,
special police officers, or any other law enforcement-related services to
commercial establishments or other individuals within Prince George’s
County.
- The
department purchased a software program to manage secondary employment
jobs. Officers must clock in and out using this program.
- Site
inspections are being conducted by the Internal Affairs Division’s
Discovery & Compliance Unit.
- When
new businesses look for secondary employment, an email announcing the
opportunity is sent out to all officers through county email.
- The
agency started a randomization process when selecting site coordinators
for new jobs to ensure a variety of coordinators, which also limits the
number of locations that one officer can coordinate.
The indicted officers are below.
Corporal Nick Agapov
Joined agency in 2011
Corporal Jonathan Haskett
Joined agency in 2015
Corporal Mathew Obordo
Joined agency in 2013
Corporal Matthew Cotillo
Joined agency in 2011
Corporal Joshua Hitchens
Joined agency in 2012
Corporal Chris Hall
Joined agency in 2011
Corporal Michael O’Connell
Joined agency in 2011
Corporal Kyle Cook
Joined agency in 2013
Corporal Travis Popieilarcheck
Joined agency in 2012
Corporal Anthony Brooke
Joined agency in 2015
Corporal Brandon Farley
Joined agency in 2012
POFC Christopher Oliver
Joined agency in 2016
POFC John Mcintosh
Joined agency in 2016
Retired Corporal James Lubonski
Joined agency in 2012
This remains an on-going investigation.
