A Philadelphia police
officer was arrested Tuesday and charged with committing fraud by requesting
compensation for military leave even though he had retired from the military.
Officer Louis Fletcher,
34, a five-year veteran of the department, was charged with theft by deception
and related offenses, police said.
Police Commissioner
Charles H. Ramsey suspended Fletcher 30 days with intent to dismiss. Fletcher
was assigned to the Ninth Police District, which covers the western half of
Center City.
An investigation was launched after the
department's Internal Affairs Division was informed Apr. 8 about Fletcher's
alleged fraud. Investigators found that Fletcher submitted requests for
military leave from January 2012 through March 2013, and was paid by the city a
total of $3,788.94, police said.
Fletcher, however, had
retired from the Navy in September 2011, police said. He also was charged with
theft by unlawful taking or disposition, receiving stolen property, tampering
with records and identification and unsworn falsification to authorities,
police said.