COBB COUNTY, Ga. — A former Cobb County police officer is in jail.
Investigators say he exposed himself in the parking lot of an elementary school and a church.
Investigators say Matthew Abbott also shared obscene material that involved children with someone, Channel 2 Cobb County Bureau Chief Michele Newell reported.
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He is accused of doing that at a police precinct while he was on duty.
Abbott took an oath to protect and serve, but now the former Cobb County police officer is on the other side of the law.
He is charged with violation of oath of office, public indecency and distributing obscene material that investigators say involved children.
“Makes me feel bad,” said Terry Fischlein, a neighbor. “I thought he was a nice person. I didn’t know that was going on”
Fischlein said he had liked having a police officer in the neighborhood.
Earlier this year, while Abbott was on duty at a police precinct, investigators say he distributed obscene material to someone through electronic messages that described explicit sexual acts with children between the ages of 8 and 12 years old.
In June, investigators say Abbott exposed himself in the parking lot of an elementary school and performed a sex act on himself in a church parking lot.
Cobb PD says the investigation began after the Utah Attorney General’s Office identified Abbott in a separate investigation,
A statement from Cobb PD’s interim chief says in par, “The people of Cobb County expect and deserve officers who uphold the law and conduct themselves with integrity, both on and off duty. The allegations in this case are extremely disturbing and do not reflect the values of our department.”
No one answered the door at Abbott’s house Friday.
Cobb PD says it called on the GBI to investigate Abbott after learning about that investigation in Utah and Abbott could potentially face additional charges.
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