Police officer submitted fraudulent payment invoices at his other jobs, CMPD says

A Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer was arrested Thursday afternoon after being accused of submitting fraudulent payment invoices to private businesses earlier this year.

Officer Lawrence Guiler is charged with eight counts of obtaining property by false pretenses, which is a Class H felony, CMPD said in a news release.

In August, businesses that had hired Guiler “in a secondary employment capacity” found irregularities in the payment invoices he submitted, police said.

The department launched criminal and internal investigations against Guiler once its secondary employment office and internal affairs were notified about the businesses’ concerns.

On more than one occasion, Guiler’s invoices overcharged the businesses for his services, police said. He also received pay multiple times on different dates for work he didn’t perform, CMPD said.

The incidents happened between March and August, police said.

Guiler began working for the department on July 23, 2013, police said. Before his arrest, he was a patrol officer in the Providence Division.

Guiler has been placed on unpaid administrative leave and is being held at Mecklenburg County Jail.

“Officers with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department are expected to conduct themselves to the highest professional standards and will be held accountable when they fail to do so,” police Chief Johnny Jennings said in a statement. “At no time will this department allow behavior that violates the law or community trust.”