Two Baltimore Police officers, ex-cop indicted on payroll theft charges

Dan Belson, The Baltimore Sun on Mar 10, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

BALTIMORE — A Baltimore Police lieutenant, a homicide sergeant and a former officer have been indicted on charges that they manipulated timekeeping records to collect extra pay, prosecutors said Tuesday.

A grand jury charged Sgt. Mark Rutkowski, 51, Lt. Welai Grant, 42, and a former officer, Harrison Brandon, 38, with felony theft and misconduct in office on Monday as a result of the payroll investigations. Grant and Rutkowski are accused of logging extra hours that they didn’t work, while Brandon, who resigned after being notified of the investigation, is accused of using fraudulent doctor’s notes to receive sick pay.

The probes into the officers’ timekeeping records came after rising concerns about excess overtime in Baltimore’s public safety agencies. Facing staffing shortages and high demand, overtime spending has cost the agency millions of dollars each year.

State’s Attorney Ivan Bates said in a statement that the alleged manipulation of time records “are not just violations of policy; they are theft from the taxpayers who fund these salaries.”

“Our office has a duty to hold anyone who steals public dollars accountable,” he said.

Mayor Brandon Scott said in a statement that “the alleged actions of these officers undermine the safety of our residents and represent a misuse of their hard-earned tax dollars.”

Rutkowski, a sergeant in the homicide unit, is accused of routinely clocking out early and late and receiving overtime. He’s also accused of using a colleague’s computer and credentials to cancel his days off, thus granting himself extra “penalty pay,” according to the indictment against him.

Police began investigating Rutkowski after a 2024 internal audit flagged irregularities in his timekeeping.

City salary data shows that Rutkowski was hired in 2001. In fiscal 2025, when the investigation took place, he made a salary of more than $136,000, but took home over $50,000 more. The prior fiscal year, he made $58,300 above his salary.

Grant, who worked in the Southern District, was accused of failing to show up for eight overnight shifts after she was promoted to lieutenant. She still logged the hours on her timesheet and was paid for those evenings, according to a news release from the state’s attorney’s office.

Grant was hired in 2008 and made almost $157,800 in fiscal 2025 — about $21,000 more than her salary, according to city data.

Brandon is accused of submitting fake doctor’s notes on five different occasions to receive sick leave pay. In addition to theft and misconduct, Brandon is charged with forgery and identity fraud.

The most recent salary data for Brandon was in fiscal 2024, and it shows him taking home $55,808, which is about $20,000 less than his salary. He was hired in 2019.

_____