MCKEESPORT, Pa. — A former McKeesport police officer is accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from the department’s evidence room.
Christopher Halaszynski, 54, of McKeesport, was charged with unlawful taking and receiving stolen property on Wednesday.
The Allegheny County DA’s Office said Halaszynski stole over $260,000.
According to court documents, he was the evidence room custodian. That role is in charge of managing all incoming evidence and either passing it along to a designated location or sending it to the crime lab for testing. The custodian would also have access to evidence from previous investigations.
The chief grew suspicious in September after several failed attempts at holding an audit of the evidence room with Halaszynski, court documents say.
Investigators said Halaszynski initially used the money to keep up with finances and pay bills but used it to go on trips around Christmas as time went on.
He told police he focused on cases from the early 2000s and initially planned on putting money back but said he got “selfish and greedy” and that the stealing “became easy.”
The DA’s office said its investigation determined 159 cases were compromised due to missing cash evidence.
“One could only gather that because of the charges at this juncture they would certainly file motions to have the case dismissed,” WPXI legal analyst Phil DiLucente said.
Although it’s a possibility, there’s no guarantee it would work.
“If there’s video evidence or there’s other evidence for prosecuting a person, that doesn’t mean just because a person is charged in law enforcement, the entire case is compromised. There might be other evidence that can be utilized,” DiLucente said.
McKeesport Mayor Michael Cherepko sent a statement to Channel 11, emphasizing that “no one is above the law.”
“It is extremely disheartening that a once-trusted supervisor within this police department was capable of violating his oath to protect and serve by participating in the activities that have been alleged,” Cherepko said. “We have instituted an entirely new process with policies and procedures that will not only modernize our evidence logs, but will provide a system of checks, balances, and safety measures recommended by experts in this field. I must say, in line with something District Attorney Zappala stated, no matter what procedures we enact, we need to be able to trust every person in the chain of custody of our police department’s evidence.”
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