OKC Police Release New Details On Charges Against Officer

News9.com

OKLAHOMA CITY -- The Oklahoma City Police Department has revealed it began investigating Lt. Christopher Gayhart last year when the department began to suspect he wasn't doing his job.

According to police spokesman Captain Patrick Stewart, in August 2010 the department initiated an investigation into Lt. Gayhart not performing his assigned duties while being paid to do so.

The department concluded its investigation and presented it to the Oklahoma County District Attorney's Office. Thursday, the district attorney filed 13 counts against Lt. Gayhart for allegedly obtaining money under false pretenses; three are felonies and ten are misdemeanors. Each count represented a single pay period.

This incident raised concerns about how the police department ensures its officers are doing what they are paid to do.

"There's a tremendous amount of checks and balances, especially in today's age of electronics and technology," said Capt. Stewart. "We have GPS on not only our phones and vehicles, but every phone call that we made, every door that we entered is controlled and is monitored, to where it can be historically looked at."

Capt. Stewart said most of the police officers report to work and perform their duties, however there are a few people who take advantage of the freedoms that come with their jobs.

Lt. Gayhart has been placed on paid administrative leave.

07/07/2011 Related Story: Charges Filed Against OKC Police Officer.