The Pittsburgh Police Sergeant Incident
In June of 2024,Pittsburgh Police Sergeant Brian Marckisotto was charged with theft by deception and unlawful use of a computer after it was discovered that he falsified timecards related to a second job. The case reveals a growing concern in law enforcement and other high-trust professions: time fraud related to off-duty employment, especially when oversight is minimal.
Secondary Employer: Target (East Liberty location)
Period of Alleged Fraud: February–March 2024
Total Overpayment: $5,752.50
Charges Filed: Theft by deception, computer fraud
Employment Status: Unpaid administrative leave
Systemic Weaknesses Highlighted
No effective mechanism for tracking hours worked across dual employers (City of Pittsburgh and Target)
Risk of schedule overlap, fatigue, or intentional time inflation when working multiple jobs.
Separate systems allowed for exploitation without immediate red flags
Timeclock fraud was only detected after video footage contradicted claimed hours
Fraud occurred over multiple pay periods before being flagged by a colleague.
Secondary Employment Policies Must Include Time Audits
Without unified tracking systems, secondary jobs create blind spots in wage validation.
Although this case study doesn’t show huge numbers, The Pittsburgh case shows that even limited-timecard fraud—just 65.5 hours—can lead to $5,700+ in unearned payments and major legal consequences. Organizations should track total hours across all jobs and implement centralized systems to prevent timecard manipulation, especially in high-accountability roles. The importance of having a Workforce Management solution that can track secondary jobs, and integrate with key systems is as prevent as ever.
