CALIFORNIA, Mo. (AP) — A former central Missouri police chief has been charged with purchasing weapons with city money and then pocketing the cash he got from selling them.
Forty-seven-year-old Michael Ward was charged Wednesday with two counts of stealing and one count of forgery.
He is the former police chief of the 4,200-person town of California. No attorney is listed for him in online court records.
Court documents say Interim Police Chief Dale Embry discovered that a handgun, AR-15, and two holographic sights were missing while doing inventory earlier this month. KOMU-TV reports that investigators said Ward bought the AR-15 and holographic sights with department funds and sold the guns to a Jefferson City pawn shop.
Investigators also said Ward forged time sheets for an officer with whom he had an intimate relationship.