VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — A sergeant and an officer with the Virginia Beach Police Department are facing multiple charges in connection with obtaining money under false pretenses, police said.
According to officials, on Oct. 6, Sergeant Rebecca Peyer and Police Officer Brian O’Connell were indicted by a Virginia Beach grand jury after an anonymous tip led to an investigation.
The anonymous tip received alleged that the pair were involved in misconduct while working in an off-duty, but official police capacity, police said.
“VBPD began an immediate investigation, in which ultimately identified actions [were] determined to be criminal in nature,” according to a VBPD statement. “The findings were presented to the Virginia Beach Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney (OCA) and after reviewing the evidence, the OCA presented the cases to the grand jury.”
They allegedly submitted hours they worked as off-duty officers, but the indictments state they obtained money by false pretenses because they did not work those hours they claimed they did. The indictment states several days this year in which this allegedly took place.
Following the investigation, Peyer was indicted on 10 felony counts, for times she allegedly took more than $1,000, and two misdemeanor counts of obtaining money under false pretenses, for times she allegedly took less than $1,000. O’Connell was indicted on two felony counts of obtaining money under false pretenses for allegedly taking more than $1,000, police said.
VBPD said that Peyer had been working with the department since 2007 and that O’Connell had worked there for a period of three years across two periods of service, one in 2021 and then returning to service in 2024.
Both Peyer and O’Connell have had their police powers suspended and were placed on administrative assignment.
“Accountability is the foundation of public trust,” Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate said. “Our community expects and deserves the highest standard of conduct from its police officers. While we are disappointed by these allegations, we are committed to holding ourselves accountable when misconduct occurs.”
10 On Your Side had reached out about the case in August, and at the time, police said the following: “We can confirm we have received an allegation of misconduct that we are actively investigating.”
Source: Fox 8 News Channel