Nine Massachusetts State Police troopers were suspended without pay Friday amid an investigation into an overtime pay scandal, the department confirmed. Nine others have retired since the start of hte investigation.
Col. Kerry Gilpin, the department's commander, announced Tuesday that 21 troopers were under investigation for allegedly being paid overtime for shifts they did not work. Nine of those troopers were suspended after their duty status hearings Friday.
In total, 19 troopers were scheduled for hearings after the investigation was announced. One trooper had already retired, and another was already suspended without pay on another matter. Nine of those remaining troopers have since retired, including six who retired Friday before their hearings.
While nine of the 10 troopers who stayed with the department for their hearings were suspended, one was kept on active duty.
Gilpin said Tuesday that the missing overtime shifts were as few as one and as high as 100 per trooper. She could not put a dollar amount on the overtime discrepancy.
An internal audit looked at 2016 payroll figures and included only members of Troop E, which is responsible for patrolling the Massachusetts Turnpike and tunnels. The investigation began after state police, as the result of an internal affairs investigation, determined the need to review payments to a handful of Troop E members for certain overtime traffic enforcement shifts - known as Accident Incidence Reduction Effort patrols - on the Massachusetts Turnpike.
The results of the audit have been forwarded to Attorney General Maura Healey, who will review it and decide whether to file criminal charges.
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"Integrity, honesty and accountability are core values of the Massachusetts State Police," Gilpin said. "For us to fulfill our mission as a police agency, we must have public trust."
