A police officer in Fairmount Heights, Maryland, has been charged with kidnapping, perjury and misconduct, according to the state prosecutor’s office.
In a statement, Maryland State Prosecutor Charlton Howard III said Phillip Dupree — who was indicted in August for allegedly participating in conspiracies to commit bank fraud, wire fraud and mail fraud — was indicted by a Prince George’s County grand jury.
In the latest indictment, Dupree is accused of conducting an illegal traffic stop in D.C., handcuffing and arresting Torrence Sinclair on Aug. 3, 2019.
Dupree is accused of using pepper spray on Sinclair while he was still handcuffed.
In Tuesday’s statement, the state prosecutor’s office said an ambulance arrived at the scene but did not treat Sinclair for pepper spray effects.
Dupree allegedly then took Sinclair to the Fairmount Heights Police Department instead of the Department of Corrections, which is where Dupree allegedly told a dispatcher was his destination.
According to the release, Dupree then completed a statement of charges and statement of probable cause, filed with the Prince George’s County District Court. Per the prosecutor:
“Among other misstatements, Officer Dupree stated that the traffic stop occurred ‘near Washington, DC,’ that ‘(ambulance) #840 came and decontaminated Arrestee (Sinclair),’ that Officer Dupree ‘transported A-1 (Sinclair) to DOC Upper Marlboro jail without incident,’ and that ‘[a]ll of these events did occur in Prince Georges County Maryland.‘”
In a statement, Howard said: “Any law enforcement officer who abuses their power, and then intentionally provides false information regarding their actions, should be held accountable. Our office will work to ensure individuals who abuse police powers are investigated and where appropriate, prosecuted.”
