ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — A veteran St. Louis County police lieutenant and former internal affairs commander on Friday was charged with a felony after police and prosecutors said he double-dipped while on duty for the St. Louis County police department.
Lt. Johnathan Cunningham faces one count of stealing more than $750, a class D felony. He’s accused of stealing about $2,400 and admitted to the offenses, according to court documents.
Investigators for St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell’s office said Cunningham worked secondary employment for Hudson Services, which provides security services for Spire, according to court documents.
Cunningham is currently suspended without pay. His annual salary is nearly $90,000, according to the St. Louis County Police Department.
Prosecutors allege Cunningham worked for the security company serving the utility company on 11 occasions between June 1 and August 9.
St. Louis County police launched an internal investigation into Cunningham earlier this month, and turned over their findings to Bell’s office on August 10.
Police and prosecutors used logins, radio responses, detachments and GPS coordinates in the investigation, according to court documents.
The work was not pre-approved by Cunningham's superiors and was contrary to department policies, according to the documents.
While cross-referencing Cunningham's working hours for secondary employment, he also claimed to work 50.5 hours in his official capacity with the county police at a rate of $47.01 per hour, for a total of $2,374.01, according to the documents.
Prosecutors allege on the following dates and times Cunningham worked for the security company while he was supposed to be on duty.
- June 1, 2022 6:30 – 10:30 a.m.
- June 20, 2022 6:30 – 10:30 a.m.
- June 27, 2022 6:30 – 10:30 a.m.
- June 30, 2022 6:31 – 11:01 a.m.
- July 15, 2022 7 a.m. – 3 p.m.
- July 21, 2022 6:30 – 10:30 a.m.
- July 22, 2022 7:01 a.m. – 3 p.m.
- July 29, 2022 7 a.m. – 3 p.m.
- August 3, 2022 10:33 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
- August 4, 2022 6:31 – 10:30 a.m.
- August 9, 2022 10:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Cunningham became a patrol officer in June 2008. He was promoted to sergeant in April 2017, and served as the acting commander of the Bureau of Professional Standards before his promotion to lieutenant in March.
