Worcester Police Officer Colby Turner arrested for allegedly stealing $45,000 in off-duty details not worked
Worchester MA August 3 2022 Worcester Police Officer Colby Turner has been placed under arrest for allegedly submitting nearly $45,000 in off duty assignment slips for assignments he did not work, according to court documents.
The police department became aware of possible criminal activity related to Turner’s off-duty assignments on July 21, according to a press statement from the department.
The Detective Bureau began an investigation and found probable cause to believe Turner had requested and received payment for fictitious off-duty assignments, the statement said.
The slips for the fictitious assignments listed details at five area businesses between January 1 and July 20 of this year.
Police allege Turner submitted 18 off-duty slips totaling $3,746.32 for Leominster Credit Union, 17 slips totaling $5,460.40 for Palladium Theater, 52 slips totaling $18,887.08 for the Walmart on Tobias Boland Way, 18 slips totaling $7,153.06 for South Middlesex Opportunity Council (SMOC) and 45 slips totaling $9,690.46 for the Price Chopper on Park Avenue, according to a statement of facts submitted by the department.
In total, police allege Turner submitted 150 slips for off-duty assignments worth $44,937.32 that he did not actually work.
All the detail slips, which list Turner’s name, appear to be in Turner’s handwriting based on previous detail slips he turned in.
The authorized signatures on the slips are unreadable, according to the statement of facts.
Many of Turner’s alleged off-duty assignments conflict with off-duty shifts that other officers were assigned to and worked. Turner was not assigned to those shifts, police said.
The officers that did work the shifts told detectives that Turner did not work the assignments with them and the businesses that the slips listed also said Turner did not work the details, according to the statement of facts.
The Latent Print Unit was able to find Turner’s fingerprints on five different slips. Turner picked up the detail checks and cashed them himself, police said .
A warrant was issued by Worcester District Court on Aug. 1 charging Turner with five felony counts of Larceny over $1,200 and a misdemeanor count of submitting false claims for reimbursement.
Turner was placed under arrest at a Worcester police station, according to the department.
Turner has worked for the department for about five years and is currently on administrative leave.
In 2021, Turner earned $159,309 in gross pay with $71,708 of that coming from overtime detail work, according to city records.
The Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission, which looks into police misconduct, has been notified of the charges against Turner, according to the department.
“At this time, we believe this is an isolated incident,” the department’s statement read, “We will review our policies and procedures related to off-duty assignments, and will be conducting an internal and external audit of the system.”
Turner will be arraigned in Worcester District Court.
“The investigation into Office Turner is still open. Once it is concluded, we will have more information to share,” Worcester Police Chief Steven Sargent said Monday. “Our officers are expected to conduct themselves with integrity at all times. When this does not happen, we will investigate and take appropriate action.”
