Case of former Cecil Township police chief scheduled for trial
Former Cecil Township police chief John T. Pushak appeared Friday in Washington County Court.
Former Cecil Township police chief John T. Pushak appeared Friday in Washington County Court.
The case of former Cecil Township police chief John T. Pushak, charged with misusing money that had been deposited in a special police department account, is scheduled for a jury trial in Washington County Court in July.
Pushak and his attorney were in the courthouse Friday morning when Judge Gary Gilman set a pretrial conference for July 2.
Pushak, 65, is accused of siphoning more than $10,000 from the police department’s federal asset forfeitures account to gamble, according to court documents.
A state police search warrant, unsealed in December 2013 at the request of the Observer-Reporter, linked Pushak’s debit card for the account he solely managed to withdrawals of thousands of dollars through multiple transactions between 2010 and 2013 while he was police chief. Some of the withdrawals were made from ATMs inside The Meadows and Rivers casinos, court records state. He repaid the money with a personal check to cover the discrepancy, and promptly resigned from the police force. Cypher & Cypher certified public accountants of Canonsburg conducted an audit.
Pushak’s career with the Cecil Township police department spanned 38 years. He has been free on his own recognizance since state police filed charges in March 2014.