A nearly 30 year officer of the Texas A&M University
Police Department was arrested for burglarizing campus buildings.
54 year old John Phillips of College Station is out of jail
after posting bond Friday. Phillips joined UPD in January 1978 and retired in
February 2007 as a master police officer.
Lt. Allan Baron says a detective checking pawn shop activity
online revealed property stolen from the Blocker Building in January and June
of this year.
Baron says once a check of the pawn shop confirmed Phillips
pawned stolen items, the Brazos County District Attorney’s Office was
contacted. Baron says that led to the decision to conduct a joint investigation
with College Station Police. Baron says because Phillips was a former police
officer, the joint investigation “would remove any questions about how the
investigation would be handled and also to avoid any perceived conflict of
interest.”
Baron says a search warrant of Phillips’ home led to the
recovery of some of the stolen items along with keys to campus buildings. More charges
are possible as investigators check property seized to see if are associated
with other burglaries on and off campus.
Baron says the reacton among current staff to Phillips’
arrest is “one of those situationa that’s almost hard to explain.” Because it’s
the first time a current or former UPD officer has been arrested, Baron says “a
lot of us are in shock. For these allegations to come forward and him be
responsible for these actions is tough. Anytime that you have an officer breaks
the trust of his officers and the public or tarnishes the integrity of the
badge it’s harmful, not only to the officers he works with but the community
that he serves. It’s definitely a tough situation and a tough time.”