Ex-Crystal Beach Fire Chief Sentenced To 5-Year Prison Term

GALVESTON, TX —The former chief of the Crystal Beach Volunteer Fire Department will spend the next five years in prison after pleading guilty to stealing more than $70,000 from the department over four years.

David Loop, 61, who entered his guilty plea to theft in March, was indicted by a Galveston County grand jury in 2014 on charges for felony misapplication of fiduciary property and felony theft of property less than $200,000, according to court records.

Prosecutors said Loop used the department's credit card and spent $25,000 at a Louisiana casino and race track, and then stole another $45,000 from the department between 2009 and 2014.

Loop was implicated when the board of directors examined the books and found out that the then-chief was writing checks for repairs to equipment that were never made, and buying equipment that never arrived at the department, KPRC reported.

The board of directors took the evidence to the Galveston County DA's Public Integrity Unit, who determined that Loop was using the money for his personal use, the Galveston County Daily News reported.

Officials later dismissed the misapplication of the fiduciary property charged against Loop.

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