Ex-Officer Accused of Sleeping, Snooping in Ind. Gov. Residence

INDIANAPOLIS --

Allegations of sleeping on the job and rifling through personal items at the Indiana governor's residence are among the lurid details of a scandal embroiling Capitol police, the unit of the Indiana State Police that guards state buildings and the governor.

State police told 6News' Jack Rinehart on Tuesday they have launched a criminal investigation into the matter.

Capitol police Officer Bradley Craig originally leveled the allegations against a former co-worker, Mike Bates, in a resignation letter Craig sent Saturday to Indiana State Police Superintendent Paul Whitesell.

Craig kept meticulous notes and began video and audio tapings beginning in July 2010 of what he claimed were the actions of Bates while the two worked security detail at the official home of Gov. Mitch Daniels and his wife, Cheri Daniels.

"I have been exposed to a very stressful and hostile work environment," Craig said in the resignation letter. "I have observed many SOP (standard operating procedure), ethical and moral violations."

Craig said he decided to resign after he felt the previous incidents he reported to a supervisor went unheeded. Craig also detailed an additional incident on April 3, when he claimed that Bates went into the governor's bedroom and began opening drawers, first pulling out a pair of men's underwear and making inappropriate comments about them.

Then, Craig said, Bates opened another drawer, pulling out women's underwear and sniffing them, remarking, "You should have been up here when their daughter used to live here … I kept me a pair of hers."

Craig said he reported numerous other issues, including a claim that his co-worker slept on the job during shifts in which the two worked together.

"He has slept a minimum of two hours, but usually averages five to six hours every shift," Craig claimed. "He'd be awake for the first hour of the shift, then go to sleep and then wake up for the last hour of the shift."

Craig recounted another incident in which he claimed Bates had taken a shower while on the job at the governor's residence, along with a couple of additional instances in which he claimed Bates ate food from the refrigerator.

Craig said Bates also left his post while on duty, essentially leaving no security at the residence, which Craig said he discovered when he arrived early for his shift.

ISP 1st Sgt. Dave Bursten said Bates resigned from the department April 12. He said a preliminary investigation was launched Thursday before it was made a formal investigation Tuesday.

"This investigation alleges one or both former officers may have intruded upon personal property located in the official state residence for the governor of Indiana," Bursten said in a news release. "Members of the Capitol police are placed in positions of great responsibility that require the highest level of integrity. Allegations of this nature are taken very serious and will be thoroughly investigated."

Craig denied any wrongdoing. He said he offered his own resignation, in part, because he was reassigned to a downtown beat after reporting the allegations regarding Bates.

"I believe I am being retaliated against for blowing the whistle and being punished for doing the right thing," Craig said in the resignation letter. "I reported a serious violation, and now I'm the one who gets reassigned for doing so."

Craig said he subsequently received a call from ISP Lt. Col. Phil Parker telling him the department didn't want him to resign and that he had been transferred to another beat because of safety.

Bursten said the results of the ISP investigation would be turned over to the Marion County Prosecutor's Office.

A representative with the governor's office said Daniels is aware of the investigation but would not be making a statement.