MEDIA, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — An officer with the Delaware County Park Police Department has found himself on the wrong side of the law, arrested Tuesday for stealing tens of thousands of dollars from the department.
Lt. Christopher Cahall began payroll duties for the department in January 2022, according to Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer.
When it came time for Cahall to rotate out of that position, the officer taking over noticed some discrepancies with time off the Cahall had taken, Stollsteimer said. “When the position changed over, and another officer was put in charge it was determined Lt. Cahall had taken some time that he hadn't accrued,” Stollsteimer said.
The officer immediately alerted detectives, Stollsteimer said.
“We did an investigation and found that he had been literally stealing overtime.”
In the year and a half he had been overseeing the department’s time sheets, Cahall was able to rip off the department and taxpayers by giving himself overtime pay for time he never worked, the D.A. said.
Stollsteimer says the detectives’ findings were alarming: “In a matter of days, we were able to determine about $36,000 in overtime was improperly collected by Lt. Cahall.”
Stollsteimer says, in an interview with detectives, Cahall admitted to stealing the money. He was arrested Tuesday.
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“It's very disheartening when somebody in public service, who is supposed to be dedicated to giving taxpayers the best benefit — we’re here to serve them, not to steal from them.”
Cahall now faces several theft charges, said Stollsteimer. “It’s a significant dollar figure and so these are felony counts.
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