DENVER — Two Denver Police Department (DPD) officers accused of billing for hours they didn't work while on off-duty assignments were charged Monday with one count each of felony theft.
Officers Michael Pineda, 50, and his son Santana Pineda, 26, were taken into custody last week after an investigation conducted by DPD Internal Affairs.
The Denver District Attorney's Office announced the charges Monday. Both men were scheduled for an advisement on Aug. 9 in Denver District Court.
DPD said its investigation began after discovering the officers were not present at a scheduled, non-department paid off-duty job on April 15.
Investigators received hours of surveillance video provided by the private employer and compared it to the officer's timesheets. DPD said they identified 23 shift discrepancies for Michael Pineda valued at $5,070 and 18 shift discrepancies for Santana Pineda valued at $3,751.50.
The officers began working off-duty for the business in October 2021, but video confirms their actual hours worked only went back as far as Feb. 28, 2022, according to DPD.
Michael Pineda joined the department in 2004, and Santana joined in 2019. Both are assigned to the DPD Patrol Division. They were placed on non-paid administrative leave due to the felony arrest, DPD said.
If convicted, they will no longer be eligible to work as sworn police officers in Colorado, in accordance with the Colorado Peace Officer Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) policy.
Wilson Beese contributed to this report.
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