Colby Turner, Worcester cop charged with larceny, pleads not guilty
WORCESTER — A city police officer arrested Monday on five felony charges of larceny over $1,200 and a misdemeanor charge of submitting false claims for reimbursement entered not guilty pleas on Tuesday and was released on personal recognizance.
Colby Turner, a Worcester police officer for the last five years, made a brief appearance in District Court the day after he was arrested in the police station.
Turner is accused of requesting and receiving reimbursement for off-duty assignments that he did not actually work.
The detective bureau conducted an investigation after the department became aware of the allegations July 21.
Between Jan. 1 and July 20 of this year, Turner is accused of submitting fictitious time slips for off-duty assignments that he did not work for five businesses in Worcester, according to court records. The documents allege that the time slips appear to be in Turner's handwriting.
According to court records, Turner submitted 150 fictitious off-duty assignment time slips for around $45,000 in that time period. The businesses included the following: Leominster Credit Union on Shrewsbury Street, the Palladium on Main Street, Walmart on Tobias Boland Way, South Middlesex Opportunity Council on Queen Street, and Price Chopper on Cambridge Street.
According to court documents, all the detail slips reportedly have unreadable authorized signatures. Many of the slips that have printed authorization appear to have fictitious names, and many conflict with recordings of other officers being on duty at these locations at the times that Turner submitted.
Turner's appearance on Tuesday was mainly to settle bail. He was released on personal recognizance on the stipulation that it could be revoked if he is arrested for another crime.
"The magnitude of these charges is devastating for Mr. Turner," Padraic Rafferty, Colby's attorney, said in a statement. "He was raised by a hardworking, well-respected family. Mr. Turner is eager to address these allegations, and that process starts today."
A pretrial conference for Turner's case has been set for Sept 26.
Scott Croteau, a spokesman for the Worcester County District Attorney's office, said the office will not handle the case after Tuesday's appearance to avoid any conflict of interest. Croteau said another district attorney's office will take over the case and the prosecuting office is yet to be determined.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Worcester cop Colby Turner pleads not guilty to larceny charges
