Attorney General Brian Frosh said the crimes are a “betrayal of the public trust.”

Two Maryland police officers face charges for crimes conducted during the course of their jobs. A state trooper is guilty of making up false DUI arrests, and an Anne Arundel County officer has been arrested for taking property from the home of a deceased man. Maryland State Trooper Corporal John Sollon has already pleaded guilty to charges related to reporting false DUI arrests and has been sentenced. Corporal Jacob Miskill of the Anne Arundel Police Department was charged with burglary and theft and was arrested on July 31, 2020.

Sollon, 36, fabricated the arrests of six people during the time he had been working on a special DUI team. In each case, the suspect was a fictitious person who was never actually stopped or arrested. The false arrests were discovered after warrants were issued when the “defendants” failed to show up to court. Officers serving those warrants went to four different residences, only to find out the people named did not exist. Sollon pleaded guilty to perjury and misconduct and was sentenced to six years in prison, a fine of $6,000, three years probation, and 300 hours of community service. The six-year prison sentence has been suspended. 

Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh thanked the Maryland State Police for bringing the case forward.

“The citizens of Maryland have an expectation that law enforcement officers are conducting their jobs honestly and with the utmost integrity,” Frosh said. “When officers do not tell the truth, it is a betrayal of the public trust.”

Corporal Jacob Miskill, courtesy Anne Arundel Police Department

The case against Anne Arundel police officer Miskill began when family members of a deceased person contacted police about missing firearms and cash. A witness claimed they saw Miskill return to the house in Pasadena the day after the man died. Charging documents say Miskill took several firearms and $900 cash from the home. Anne Arundel County Police Interim Chief William Lowry ordered Miskill’s pay suspended in the wake of the charges.

“The tarnish placed on our badge will be removed by the honorable and continual service of our Police Department, as was demonstrated today by the immediate criminal investigation into this incident resulting in the arrest of this Officer.”

Miskill has been charged with first degree theft, third degree theft, fourth degree burglary, theft scheme, and misconduct in office. He was released on his own recognizance as the investigation continues.