An entire North Carolina police department was placed on paid administrative leave after a city’s olice chief and a lieutenant were detained on Thursday for double dipping while on the clock.
Southport Police Chief Gary Smith, 46, and 48-year-old Lt. Michael Christian Simmons were charged with conspiracy to obtain property by false pretenses, willful failure to discharge duties and obstruction of justice.
FBI and the State Bureau of Investigation began their look into the two officers on April 4 after other officers tipped them off, District Attorney Jon David explained to CBS 17.
Chief Gary Smith, 46, and 48-year-old Lt. Michael Christian Simmons were charged with conspiracy to obtain property by false pretenses, willful failure to discharge duties an obstruction of justice
Video courtesy of WECT6
Smith and Simmons were said to have been driving overnight shifts for an unnamed local trucking company while they were also on shift at the department.
They often had to travel out of town for their second job, David added.
‘It is indeed that I get before you today with a heart laden with grief for all these events that happened today,’ said Mayor Jerry Dove. ‘It was a shock to me to hear all these, being a former chief and knowing the officers that worked in that department and hired at least half of them’
Smith was arrested early on Thursday morning and booked at the Brunswick County Detention Center with a $10,000 bond. He was released on bail.
Simmons was taken into custody at the Thursday news conference.
Search warrants were executed Thursday at the police department, town hall and the trucking company.
‘It is indeed that I get before you today with a heart laden with grief for all these events that happened today,’ said Mayor Jerry Dove. ‘It was a shock to me to hear all these, being a former chief and knowing the officers that worked in that department and hired at least half of them.’
The Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office was advised by the city board to assume all law responsibilities in the area at the meantime, Dove said.
Smith was arrested early on Thursday morning and booked at the Brunswick County Detention Center with a $10,000 bond. He was released on bail
‘We will be relying on (the sheriff’s office) substantially on the road ahead to step into the void and provide a police presence,’ David added. ‘The sheriff’s office already has overlapping jurisdiction with Southport. It’s not new that they would be patrolling these streets. They know the lay of the land and I’m very confident that citizens will be well protected.’
But David made sure not to call all the officers bad.
‘A lot of these officers have done absolutely nothing wrong. Some of them are the ones that first came forward,’ David added. ‘This stain should not be extended to the officers who take seriously their duty to serve and protect.’
Cases from the City of Southport are now also under investigation too.
The sheriff’s office will assist in the cases if needed, but David didn’t feel like any of the cases were handled improperly.