"It's very embarrassing": Board of Police Commissioners staff members under investigation
(CBS DETROIT) – The Detroit Board of Police Commissioners is at the center of several investigations. One of those commissioners, Ricardo Moore, told CBS News Detroit on Tuesday that two board staff members have been suspended, and depending on the outcome, their jobs are possibly on the line.
"This has been brewing for a minute," Bryan Ferguson, chair of the Board of Police Commissioners, said during last Thursday's weekly meeting.
Ferguson informed his colleagues recently there are several investigations underway over a possible payroll scam involving at least two board staff members.
"We're talking about ghost employees. We're talking about issues with timekeeping. We're talking about issues with a nexus to human resources. Human resources has weighed in, so you know, they're a part of this investigation. The law department has weighed in early on as it relates to the employment of the employees who have been suspended," Moore told CBS News Detroit. T
The mayor's office told CBS News Detroit, "The administration doesn't comment on ongoing investigations."
Moore characterizes the allegations as a distraction tarnishing the board's mission.
"It's very embarrassing, to say the least, public trust comes into hand because we are responsible for oversight of the Detroit Police Department. So we have our own issues taking place; how can we realistically enforce rules with the department?" Moore said.
In 2014 Moore asked for an audit of the board's resources and believes the practice should be routine.
"We had issues there. We had a card or gas card that was assigned to a deceased person that worked for the board that was still being used. We have police commissioners with bulletproof vests, which hadn't been turned in, and numerous other things that we found," Moore said.
The board chairman tried to address this latest round of controversy at the last meeting:
"The BOPC chairperson requests the board to consider disciplinary action for OCI Police Commissioner, supervisor investigator, and the BOPC Executive Manager Policy. I need a two-thirds roll call vote is going to be required," Ferguson said while motioning to go into closed session.
It didn't happen.
Instead, he got chastised by some of his fellow commissioners.
"You already put it out publicly; consider this is totally inappropriate how we should conduct our business DPD don't (sic) bring that type of matter to consider, and this board is totally out of line to entertain a motion of that kind," commissioner Willie Bell, representing District 4 said.
"I'm uncomfortable having a personnel meeting closed session without the lawyer and the parliamentarian," commissioner Jim Holley said.
The board will pick up the discussion when they meet again on Thursday. They are expected to go into a closed session this time.