A Seattle police officer was charged Tuesday with first-degree theft after a lieutenant found discrepancies in his time records.
Michael J. Stankiewicz is on unpaid leave. He's been employed by the Seattle Police Department since March 5, 1997.
“I found 60 days that Officer Stankiewicz was marked as present and paid for working, but there was little to no electronic evidence he was at work,” SPD detective Aaron Dalan wrote in a police document about the investigation.
“His electronic footprint on these days in question were almost identical to those he was marked as off and not at work.”
SPD noticed the discrepancies in Stankiewicz’s schedule Aug. 15 when he didn't respond to a call over the police radio on a day he was scheduled to work.
The next day, Lt. Grant Ballingham, who was monitoring the radio, spoke to Department of Corrections Officer Steve Lambert, Stankiewicz’s DOC partner.
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Lambert told Lt. Ballingham that Stankiewicz did not report for duty Aug. 15. Lambert also said he did not see Stankiewicz at work from Aug. 7 through Aug. 11. Stankiewicz did not have a position that would allow him to work from home.
This led Ballingham to review Stankiewicz’s use of SPD electronic databases, including computer-aided dispatch and payroll calendars.
The frequent discrepancies led Ballingham to suspect Stankiewicz was being paid for hours he did not work.
According to SPD documents,Stankiewicz was paid nearly $24,000 when he was actually not present.
After Ballingham informed Capt. Paul McDonagh, East Precinct commander, of his discoveries regarding Stankiewicz, a formal complaint was sent to the SPD Office of Professional Accountability.
On Aug. 29, Stankiewicz was suspended with pay. He is now on unpaid leave.