DeKalb officer fired after theft arrest

LITHONIA, Ga.,None — A DeKalb police officer, recently named Officer of the Month, was arrested on charges he stole from people while in uniform. He has since been fired from the department.

Officer Ghayth Abdul-Mughnee, 30, was arrested Wednesday night and was taken into the DeKalb County Police Headquarters where he was a 4-year veteran, working as center precinct morning patrol officer.

Detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Abdul-Mughnee for theft by taking, possession of marijuana and violation of oath of office.

Police told Channel 2's Sophia Choi some additional charges are pending.

Police said Abdul-Mughnee was put on administrative leave after investigators responded to a domestic call at his home on Raiders Ridge Drive in Lithonia shortly after 2 a.m. Monday.

An incident report said the officer's live-in girlfriend, Shawte White, 33, alerted them about the theft as she was being arrested for simple assault.

The report said, "Abdul-Mughnee would bring miscellaneous items home from work that belonged to people he arrested."

According to the report, inside the home in Lithonia investigators found a laptop, cell phone and an iPod, as well as several banking transaction cards and banking information.

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A police source told Choi they found ATM cards with pin numbers and credit cards not only in the home, but in the front shirt pocket of Abdul-Mughnee's uniform.

In the report, White also said Abdul-Mughnee would bring home marijuana that he had confiscated from drug suspects.

Also confiscated from his home: a patrol car.

Police said that was his perk for getting Officer of the Month in December.

That patrol car is now impounded as evidence.

WSBTV