PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, Md. — Thirteen Prince George's County Police officers and a recently retired police officer were indicted on charges of misconduct in office as well as felony and misdemeanor theft charges.
The indicted officers are: Corporal Nick Agapov; Corporal Jonathan Haskett; Corporal Mathew Obordo; Corporal Matthew Cotillo; Corporal Joshua Hitchens; Corporal Chris Hall; Corporal Michael O’Connell; Corporal Kyle Cook; Corporal Travis Popieilarcheck; Corporal Anthony Brooke; Corporal Brandon Farley; POFC Christopher Oliver; POFC John Mcintosh; Retired Corporal James Lubonski.
The alleged incidents happened between January 2019 to March 2021.
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.
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.
According to police reports, 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 duties 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.
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.
“This is truly a disheartening day for the men and women who represent the very best of the Prince George’s County Police Department," said Police Chief Malik Aziz. "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."
