NM State Police lieutenant accused of stealing $15,000 in overtime fraud
Jul. 23—A recently retired State Police lieutenant is behind bars after allegedly raking in thousands in overtime while staying at home last year in southern New Mexico.
Lt. David Neil, a 24-year veteran with the agency, is charged with 55 counts of receiving public money for services not rendered and one count of fraud.
Neil turned himself in on Tuesday, according to officer Ray Wilson, a New Mexico State Police spokesman. Neil was booked into the Grant County Detention Center on Tuesday.
Neil, 55, was placed on administrative leave in December. "Neil, who was eligible for retirement, submitted his paperwork and retired on January 1," Wilson said.
State Police Chief Troy Weisler said, in a statement, "Today is a difficult day" for the agency.
"But it also underscores our unwavering dedication to transparency and ethical conduct," Weisler said. "No one is above the law, and we will continue to hold ourselves to the highest standards of accountability. The actions of this individual do not reflect the values and integrity of our officers who serve their communities with honor every day."
Wilson said the monthslong investigation began last year "after internal audits revealed discrepancies in Neil's timecard submissions and overtime claims."
It appears the 6th Judicial District Attorney's Office launched the probe and its investigators began surveilling Neil in September, according to an arrest warrant affidavit filed in Magistrate Court.
Police said the investigators found Neil was home in Gila during five days in September and October — when Neil had clocked overtime hours for the "Operation Stone Garden" federal grant.
According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the grant program "provides funding to enhance cooperation and coordination among state, local, tribal, territorial and federal law enforcement agencies to jointly enhance security along the United States land and water borders."
By Oct. 27, the DA's investigators brought their investigation to State Police along with documentation of Neil's payroll, mileage reports and overtime forms, according to the affidavit. A State Police detective then began watching Neil and found him at home in four days in November, all of which he put in for overtime.
Police said Neil spoke with them on Dec. 7 and told them "when he worked overtime initially, he was doing what was expected of him."
"He said he became complacent and his rank at the time made it easy," according to the affidavit. Neil allegedly told detectives he had been falsifying overtime for over a year and, when asked why, replied, "It was my paycheck ... it just got bigger."
Police said Neil estimated he made $26,000 in overtime.
On April 17, detectives executed a search warrant on Neil's cellphone records showing he was "at or near his home" on 55 days between July and November, according to the affidavit. He submitted "Operation Stone Garden" signed overtime forms "for each of those dates for payment."
Police said Neil claimed 277 hours of overtime during that period, collecting $15,995 in payment.
