Dozens of CHP officers charged with felonies in alleged overtime fraud scheme

Criminal charges have been filed against 54 California Highway Patrol officers accused of participating in a vast overtime fraud scheme in East Los Angeles, according to California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office.

From 2016 through early 2018, the officers fraudulently claimed they worked overtime hours worth about $227,000, according to a news release from Bonta’s office. His office filed charges in Los Angeles County Superior Court early this month.

The officers claimed extra hours when they were assigned shifts protecting Caltrans highway construction workers, according to the release. They would work three or four hours but record eight, the release says.

The officers have all been charged with felonies because they all claimed overtime worth more than $950.

Three former officers also claimed fraudulent hours working high occupancy vehicle lanes. Those officers “manufactured fake warnings and assistance given to drivers,” according to the release.

The California Highway Patrol launched an investigation into the alleged schemes in March 2018. It opened the inquiry after someone noticed the East L.A. station, which covers the smallest geographic area in its division, had nearly three times the overtime as the station covering the largest area, according to a criminal complaint.

Supervisors were involved, and the fraudulent hours were reported during graveyard shift hours, according to the complaint.

Eleven of the 54 officers still work for the agency, according to the CHP. Those officers have been placed on administrative leave and their peace officer powers removed, according to the department.

The officers are scheduled to appear in Los Angeles County Superior Court March 17 and 18.

Two of the defendants were charged separately with conspiracy and accepting bribes in exchange for “falsifying documents to register exotic ‘gray market’ cars,” according to the release.

“Trust is a critical part of successful law enforcement,” Bonta said in the release. “These defendants disregarded the law through their alleged actions and did so without thought of how their conduct would impact the California Highway Patrol or the community that trusted them to protect and serve. I’m thankful to CHP for its thorough investigation, and for working with DOJ to hold these officers accountable.”

This story was originally published February 18, 2022 at 10:33 AM.