A former Boston Police officer, Thomas Nee, has been sentenced for his role in an overtime fraud scheme that plagued the Boston Police Department’s evidence warehouse, marking yet another chapter in the saga of abuse and mismanagement within the law enforcement agency.
Nee, age 67, was handed two years of supervised release and is on the hook for a $2,000 fine and restitution amounting to $16,151, after he pleaded guilty back in November 2021 to one count each of conspiracy to commit theft concerning programs receiving federal funds and embezzlement from an agency receiving federal funds, the scheme involved him and at least 14 other police officers who together defrauded the department claiming pay for hours not worked, effectively pilfering taxpayer dollars for personal gain over a three-year period starting in February 2015 and ending in February 2018.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Nee falsely claimed to have worked full shifts on the "purge" overtime, designated for the disposal of old, unneeded evidence from 4 – 8 p.m. on weekdays, and on "kiosk" shifts, where officers were tasked with the collection of old prescription drugs on Saturdays, however, records show he routinely departed hours early from these shifts while still claiming full compensation.
During the three years of fraudulent claims, Nee pocketed approximately $16,151 for overtime hours he did not work, which is but a fraction of what may have been wrongfully claimed by the 15 officers implicated in the debacle; with 10 officers convicted by guilty plea or jury verdict, four acquitted just last April, and another passing away before the charges could be set in the marble of a courtroom judgement.
These federal funds misappropriated by Nee and his cohorts were part of the annual benefits exceeding $10,000 received by the Boston Police Department (BPD) from federal grants provided by the U.S. Department of Transportation and U.S. Department of Justice from 2015 through 2019, as noted by Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy along with Special Agents Russell W. Cunningham of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General, and Jodi Cohen of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Grady of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case, bringing justice, to an extent, to the people of Boston who entrust their officers with not only their safety but also their hard-earned tax dollars.
