A high-ranking law enforcement officer with the National Park Service has been charged with stealing money that belonged to the agency, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court on Thursday.
Patricia Buccello, the special agent in charge of the National Park Service’s Investigative Services Branch, was named in a criminal information filed in federal court in Washington.
Between April 2005 and March, Buccello “did receive, conceal and retain stolen property of the United States,” according to federal court documents signed by federal prosecutors.
The stolen property is identified in documents as an unspecified amount of U.S. currency that Buccello knew was “stolen and obtained by fraud.”
Asource close to the case said investigators found that Buccello converted a government asset to cash for her own benefit. The official would not identify that asset.
Buccello was charged in a federal information. That is an indication that a plea has been worked out, because a person can be charged by information only if he or she waives the right to have a grand jury hear the evidence, according to federal law enforcement sources.
A hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 31 in U.S. District Court.
Federal prosecutors and law enforcement officials declined to elaborate on the charges Thursday.
Neither Buccello nor her attorney could be reached for comment Thursday. Acting special agent in charge at the office where Buccello worked, Guy Whitmer, said he could not comment on her job status.
The charge was a misdemeanor, meaning that the value of what was stolen would be under $1,000. For Buccello, a guilty plea probably means an end to her law enforcement career, a source close to the case said.
The investigation was started by the inspector general’s office of the U.S. Department of Interior, a law enforcement source said.
A spokesperson for the National Park Service was unable to say how long Buccello had worked for the agency.
