COLUMBUS, Ohio — Three Columbus police officers pleaded guilty Thursday to a charge of dereliction of duty for time theft and "double-dipping", according to Franklin County Municipal Court records.
The investigation began in Oct. 2020, when then Columbus Police Chief Thomas Quinlan ordered officers in the Public Corruption Task Force to look into possible time theft among Community Liaison Officers (CLO) and School Resource Officers (SRO).
The task force found three officers who worked special duty assignments while being paid their police salary and other incidents of time theft.
The officers are 51-year-old Joseph Townsend, 52-year-old Robert Thissen and 55-year-old William McCague.
Townsend was hired in April 1994 and in 2020, was a CLO required to complete daily log sheets. Apart from his CLO duties, he worked special duty assignments at businesses, arenas and schools.
The task force found many unaccounted for hours between Jan. and Nov. and discovered he also arrived late or left early from his assignment. Townsend also regularly took one to two-hour lunches, according to court records.
Townsend also "double-dipped", meaning he worked special duty while also being paid for police salary, an investigator wrote in a court filing.
He double-dipped every month in Jan. through Oct., court records show.
The task force also conducted surveillance on Townsend in November and found on one occasion, he sat at a substation for half his shift, despite claiming to make several runs across town. During surveillance, the task force said he was never on his assigned precinct.
The task force also found Townsend provided inaccurate information about where and what he was doing on his daily logs.
Thissen, a 29-year veteran of the department, is a high school resource officer.
Thissen was found to have unaccounted for hours from Jan. to March, often arriving late or leaving early from his assigned school.
When the school closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, he worked at a police call center before working at the social justice protests downtown. He was then assigned to guard duties at hospitals and other patrolling.
The investigation found Thissen also "double-dipped", working special duty at a store that overlapped with his police work in March, April, June, July, August and Sept. 2020.
McCague was hired by the Columbus Division of Police in May 1994. In 2020, he worked as a high school resource officer before also working at the call center, at the protests, guard duty and other patrolling.
While at the school, the task force said McCague arrived late and left early from his assignment in Jan., Feb. and March, according to court records.
In August, McCague was transferred to a CLO position and was also required to complete daily log sheets. The investigation found he "double-dipped" on a special duty assignment in March and Aug.
The task force also found McCague also was paid by an employer for a special duty assignment for more hours than he worked.
McCague also provided inaccurate information on his daily log sheet while he was a CLO, court records show.
Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant said in a statement:
"I am disappointed in the actions of these now-former officers. They failed to live up to the standards of this division and the oath they swore to our city. We are in positions of authority and trust, and we can never forget that. I am pleased to report that the moment division leadership learned of this concern, swift and appropriate action was taken. These officers were thoroughly investigated, and referred for prosecution. When our officers do the right thing, I will support them one hundred percent. When they fail to live up to our standards of excellence, they will be held accountable.”
The Columbus City Attorney's Office confirmed that Townsend will have to pay $737.22 in restitution and Thissen will have to pay $1,340.40. McCague will not pay restitution.
The amounts were part of an agreement settled between the involved parties, a spokesperson for the city attorney's office said.
Townsend and McCacgue also agreed to surrender their Ohio peace Officer Traning Academy certification, meaning they cannot work for any law enforcement agency in the state of Ohio. Thissen will keep his certification.
