BEDFORD – A retired Lawrence County Sheriff’s deputy was arrested after an Indiana State Police investigation found he falsified time record-keeping documents to receive personal payment for hours he did not work.
Timothy D. Butcher, 50, of Princeton, was arrested by members of the Indiana State Police’s Special Investigations Unit with assistance from agents of the United States Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General late Thursday evening.
Butcher was arrested in Princeton by agents from the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General on an arrest warrant issued from Lawrence Superior Court I on the following charges:
- Count 1 – Theft, a Level 6 Felony
- Count 2 – Official Misconduct, a Level 6 Felony
- Count 3 – Theft, a Level 6 Felony
- Count 4 – Official Misconduct, a Level 6 Felony
- Count 5 – Theft, a Level 6 Felony
- Count 6 – Official Misconduct, a Level 6 Felony
- Count 7 – Theft, a Level 6 Felony
- Count 8 – Official Misconduct, a Level 6 Felony
Butcher was transported to the Gibson County Jail where his custody was transferred to Lawrence County where he was booked into jail and released after posting a $750 cash bond.
The arrest warrant was issued following a two-year Indiana State Police investigation.Â
According to a probable cause affidavit by ISP Detective Craig Starr, Officer Butcher was serving as the grant administrator over the federal grants received by the Sheriff’s Department in 2017, 2018, 2020, and 2021.
Butcher was responsible for compliance with all state and federal regulations regarding federal grants.
Butcher retired on July 23, 2021, and a new grant administrator examined the grant activity under Butcher and found discrepancies in grant administration on the part of Butcher.
The Indiana State Board of Accounts performed an audit/investigation regarding this complaint. According to the Indiana State Board of Accounts, Butcher reported working 1,351.5 hours of overtime through federal grants between 2017 and 2021.
Indiana State Board of Accounts found that of the 1,351.5 hours Mr. Butcher reported working, all but 16 hours had unsupported documentation.
The Indiana State Board of Accounts provided the following information:
- Butcher did not receive any compensation from the federal grants in 2019. In the years, 2017, 2018, 2020, and 2021, Butcher received compensation from the federal grants, Butcher was also the grant administrator over the federal grants for the Sheriff’s Department.
- Butcher was compensated for 1,351.5 hours charged to the federal grants. Due to the lack of OAS, lack of citations, lack of tickets, overlapping hours, and minimal activity from federal grants recorded in the dispatch call logs, the Indiana State Board of Accounts could not substantiate 1,335.5 hours that were charged by Mr. Butcher to the federal grants.
- The Indiana State Board of Accounts investigation determined that in 2017, Butcher claimed 570 hours of overtime that he was not entitled to and received $17, 642.05 as payment for those hours.
- The Indiana State Board of Accounts investigation determined that in 2018, Butcher claimed 642 hours of overtime that he was not entitled to and received $19,870.53 as payment for those hours.
- The Indiana State Board of Accounts investigation determined that in 2020, Butcher claimed 26.5 hours of overtime that he was not entitled to and received $892.52 as payment for those hours.
- The Indiana State Board of Accounts investigation determined that in 2021, Butcher claimed 97 hours of overtime that he was not entitled to and received $3,266.96 as payment for those hours.
- In total Butcher received $41,672.06 he was not entitled to receive.
Butcher was interviewed regarding these allegations on October 6, 2021, by Indiana State Police detectives. He admitted to claiming overtime payments that he was not entitled to. Butcher admitted to fabricating activity by just making up names and information and said that he also went onto the department files and took information from them to make up false activity.
