Ex-Murrieta Reserve Cop Pleads Guilty To Soliciting Bribes

MURRIETA, CA — A former Murrieta reserve police officer admitted in federal court that he solicited bribes from a wealthy Colombian art dealer who sought entry into the United States, according Southern California News Group, which broke the story.

From April 2013 to February 2020, while Paul John Gollogly was working for the Murrieta Police Department, he allegedly assisted the unnamed dealer in facilitating U.S. Department of Homeland Security authorizations that allowed the man to enter and work in the country, according to the Sept. 6 SCNG report.

Gollogly, now 74, went as far as registering the art dealer as a confidential informant with the Murrieta Police Department, which he had done previously for the dealer while working for a Florida law enforcement agency. Gollogly even claimed, falsely, that the art dealer's work as an informant resulted in arrests and large drug seizures, according to the SCNG report.

"If the art dealer had problems reentering the U.S., Gollogly would personally communicate with immigration officials to verify and vouch for his work as an informant for Murrieta police and other agencies," SCNG reported.

Gollogly came to the city of Murrieta in early 2013 after serving as a narcotics investigator for many years with the state of California, according to city of Murrieta spokesperson Dominique Samario.

"Mr. Gollogly served as a Reserve Police Officer for the Murrieta Police Department. He was assigned to work in the newly established anti money laundering operation. Immediately following a search warrant served by the FBI at the home of Mr. Gollogly, Mr. Gollogly’s status as a Murrieta Reserve Officer was terminated," Samario wrote in an emailed statement.

"The Murrieta Police Department fully cooperated with the FBI and Department of Justice throughout the inquiry, including providing any documents required by the FBI to complete their investigation," Samario continued. "The plea agreement makes it clear that neither the police department nor the City of Murrieta was the target of this investigation. Unfortunately, the FBI investigation has revealed that Mr. Gollogly concealed material facts from the City, made false and fraudulent representations to the City with regard to his work, and defrauded the City and Murrieta citizens of their right to honest services."

The Murrieta Police Department's anti-money laundering operation ended in 2020 when the city learned that Gollogly was the target of an FBI investigation. It is not operational today, Samario added.

Gollogly is facing a maximum of 10 years in federal prison, but prosecutors have asked the court to sentence him to no more than 18 months, SCNG reported.

Read the full SCNG report.