Pearl police officer fired for allegedly stealing $32,000. dollars to a dying woman

The Pearl Police Department fired Patrol Officer Taylor Loftin for stealing $32,000 from the home of a dying woman. This is the second officer fired for an alleged crime in less than a year.

On the morning of November 18, Jason Kelly’s mother, Jackie, unexpectedly collapsed and his father called 911.

Emergency workers arrived. Kelly said four or five Pearl police officers, including Loftin, did the same.

His 80-year-old mother never recovered and may have died from blood clots, he added. “It was unexpected.”

She had just inherited $32,000 and received the money in cash, which she put in an envelope in a bedroom drawer, he said.

After the ambulance workers and police left, Kelly said his father determined the money had been stolen and called Pearl police, who returned to the house.

Upon arrival, Loftin admitted that he opened the drawer and saw the money, but insisted that it be closed immediately, Kelly added. “He turned off the camera and stole $32,000.”

Kelly praised the Pearl police’s quick response and said, “I hope they press charges.”

He said he didn’t know if the city would refund the family.

The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is investigating, but spokesman Bailey Martin said the agency could not comment further. Loftin could not be reached for comment.

Kelly believes thefts must have happened before. “It’s not the first time he’s doing this,” he said.

Pearl Police Chief Nick McLendon said he was not aware of any previous incidents.

Asked about the possibility of criminal proceedings, he said he could not comment further because the case was ongoing.

In a statement published publicly, he stated that the officer had not been charged with any crime and should be considered innocent. But the department, he said, “must address even the slightest appearance of impropriety – particularly in the area of ​​law enforcement.”

Two days before Christmas 2023, Pearl Police Officer Michael Christian Green forced an arrested man to lick urine from the floor of his cell.

A 26-year-old officer took a man into custody after reporting a domestic disturbance at Sam’s Club in Pearl. After he placed the man in a cell, the video shows the man telling Green he had to urinate, but when Green didn’t respond, the man urinated in a corner, according to a federal information bill.

When Green found out what the man had done, Green scolded him: “Let me tell you something. See this phone? I’ll kick your fucking ass with this. You’re going to go in there and lick that bitch out. Do you understand me? …Go suck it up now.

Green filmed the man licking urine from the floor and when the man choked, Green said: “Don’t spit it out.” When the man choked, Green replied, “Lick it. Drink your fucking piss….

When the man was allowed to leave the reservation area, he vomited into a trash can.

June 13 in green he was sentenced to one year in federal prison and fined $1,500. He told the judge he regretted what he had done.

At a news conference after Green’s guilty plea, Pearl Mayor Jake Windham told reporters: “God created us in his image. To treat someone like that is despicable.”

“If you’re going to work as a police officer,” said Windham, who served in law enforcement for 16 years, “you’ve got to do everything right.”

He apologized to the man and his family for the “terrible treatment by a justice official.”

Windham said at the time, “We hold our officers to a higher standard.”

Four days after the incident, Windham met with Green and told him to resign, which he did.

Windham said the city is dealing with things quickly. “I think there is a stark contrast between the Pearl Police Department and this incident (and handling) of the ‘Thug Squad.’

Six Rankin County officers were involved in torturing two Black men in January 2023 and shooting one of them, but were not fired until six months later. Six officers pleaded guilty and are currently serving sentences ranging from 10 to 40 years in federal prison.

Green had been on the force for six months when this incident occurred. “When he arrived at the Pearl Police Department, his record was clean,” Windham said. “We try to do thorough background checks on people.”

He said he hoped law enforcement would report any issues involving officers to the Mississippi State Council on Law Enforcement Standards and Training.

The new law, passed in the wake of the Thug Gang’s actions, increases the board’s ability to investigate allegations against officers.

As for Loftin, McLendon placed him on administrative leave after investigating the matter. On Thursday, the Pearl Board of Aldermen fired the officer on McLendon’s orders.

“We responded immediately,” Windham said. “We don’t agree to this.”

It’s a bad situation where “we have to fire officers,” he said, “but we’ll make sure that if they screw up, we send them on.”

When asked about recouping the family’s $32,000, the mayor replied, “Our goal is to reunite the family as quickly as possible.”

Loftin was hired by Dean Scott, who resigned as Pearl’s police chief in January following an investigation into possible tax misuse. WLBT investigation revealed that Scott claimed to have worked for Rankin County as a household fraud investigator while he handled city business at law enforcement conferences on the coast. He currently works as a Capitol Police lieutenant.

Loftin has worked in various positions in law enforcement. He worked for the Flowood Police Department and the Brandon Police Department before joining the Pearl Police Department, where he worked for several years.

According to his Facebook page, Loftin is a graduate of Baylor University, married and has a newborn son.

“He threw his whole life away,” Kelly said. “You’d risk your entire family for $32,000?”

This article appeared for the first time Mississippi today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.