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Just weeks before President Donald Trump federalized the Washington, D.C., police force over crime woes, the Metropolitan Police Department was hit with accusations of allegedly juking crime stats for more favorable results.
“When our members respond to the scene of a felony offense where there is a victim reporting that a felony occurred, inevitably there will be a lieutenant or a captain that will show up on that scene and direct those members to take a report for a lesser offense,” D.C. Police Union chairman Gregg Pemberton told NBC Washington in July of an alleged trend to manipulate crime stats.
“So, instead of taking a report for a shooting or a stabbing or a carjacking, they will order that officer to take a report for a theft or an injured person to the hospital or a felony assault, which is not the same type of classification.”
The accusations from the union chief followed the police department suspending Washington, D.C., police commander Michael Pulliam in mid-May for allegedly changing crime statistics in his district, local media reported in July.
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The Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C., is accused of changing crime stats. (Getty Images)
The police commander was accused of falsifying crime data to make crime trends look more favorable for the city, but has denied the allegations. A week before his suspension, Pulliam filed an equal employment opportunity complaint against a higher-up, local outlet NBC Washington reported.
Pulliam is currently under investigation over allegedly changing stats. The Metropolitan Police Department told Fox News Digital Thursday, when asked for additional comment and updates on the case, that it “does not comment on internal investigations or personnel matters.”
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