FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — A metro Atlanta fire department lieutenant will be placed on leave after being arrested for stalking.
Forsyth County Fire Dept. Lt. Patrick Allingham was charged with stalking in Jackson County.
Copies of the arrest report and arrest warrant for Allingham say he is accused of violating a restraining order and using his children to spy on his estranged wife.
The police report notes that Allingham was informed he had a warrant out for his arrest and told police he would turn himself in the same day, but instead turned himself in several days later at the direction of his attorney.
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According to the information given to police by Allingham’s estranged wife, she and Allingham separated about a year prior and she has since lived with her mother in Hoschton.
Since moving, the wife told police she had gotten a boyfriend, who is also divorced.
Allingham’s wife told police that he contacted her boyfriend’s ex-wife, and the two of them used her children with Allingham to keep tabs on her and report her comings and goings to Allingham.
As the individual paying for the phone bill on his estranged wife’s phone account, Allingham was also accused of using the service provider’s app to surveil her and track her whereabouts.
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An arrest warrant for Allingham said he violated a temporary protective order against him for his estranged wife as part of the aggravated stalking charge.
A police report filed in relation to the aggravated stalking accusation said Allingham had previously been accused of assaulting his wife, but she had agreed to lessen the charges so he would not lose his job.
The police report says evidentiary items from prior court proceedings revolving around the estranged couple’s marriage and subsequent separation confirmed these details and mention their inclusion in the items submitted to obtain a warrant for Allingham’s arrest.
The fire department said in a statement that Allingham will be placed on administrative leave upon his release from Jackson County authorities.
The department also launched an internal investigation into Allingham as a result of his arrest.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Allingham was charged with aggravated stalking, but said the charges themselves were from the Hoschton Police Department.
Channel 2 Action News is still working to learn more about the case.
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