A western Pennsylvania man accused of bilking portions of proceeds from Officer Down 5K events across the country, including in Lehighton, turned himself in Wednesday on felony theft charges.

Thomas “T.J.” Burke, 33, of Oil City, was arraigned in front of Magisterial District Judge Andrew F. Fish in Venango County and released on $15,000 unsecured bail.

Burke, a former part-time police officer, was arrested by Oil City police for keeping proceeds promised to the city.

Charges in Oil City

According to an affidavit of probable cause filed by officer Robert Culp, Burke was contracted to run an Officer Down 5K run-walk in Oil City in June 2017.

Per the agreement, Burke was to turn over 20 percent of the proceeds of the event, $2,339.50 to the city. Burke was to make four payments of $250 and a final payment of $1,339.50, according to police, but only one check was ever disbursed.

Burke also reportedly said he spent $1,041 on timing equipment for the race, but a police interview with the owner of Miles of Smiles Timing Services showed Burke was only billed $400.

“It is clear Burke falsely stated the costs he paid for the timing services, billing the city for an additional $641,” police said. “To date, Miles of Smiles Timing Services has not been compensated for their services rendered.”

Police interviewed additional victims and witnesses, Culp wrote.

“We believe (Burke) has demonstrated a continued course of conduct with the intent to deceive and commit the crime of the theft,” he added.

Issues in Lehighton

Organizers in Lehighton began working with Burke in 2015 for their annual Officers Down 5K in the borough.

Nikki Nothstein of Lehighton helped bring the event to Carbon County to honor Pennsylvania State Police trooper Bryon Dickson, who was shot and killed by Eric Frein outside the Blooming Grove state police barracks.

All seemed well the first year after Burke gave back $12,000 to split among three beneficiaries, one of which was Dickson’s family.

“It was a great first year and we were excited, and the people were excited too,” Nothstein said. “So, we decided to bring T.J. back in 2016.”

That is when Nothstein started noticing red flags. The race was equally successful as the year before in terms of participation, but Burke only gave $3,000 in proceeds.

“I didn’t understand how we could have such a drop off and I started to press T.J. for financials,” Nothstein said. “It took me eight months of badgering him just to get that $3,000. He kept giving me excuses that he lost his phone, he was in the hospital or his computer was stolen. Horrifyingly, they were the same excuses he was giving across the country.”

Nothstein later found out Dickson’s wife only received around $1,000 of the anticipated $3,000 from the 2015 race proceeds.

She also learned Burke had stiffed many local vendors, some of which have active civil lawsuits against him.

“My husband, Doug, and I removed ourself from any organization of the race in 2017,” she said.

A common occurrence

Officers in Minnesota’s East Grand Forks Police Department say they’re still waiting for their full cut of the proceeds, almost $2,000, from a race. Burke ran three races in the state since 2016 and all local event managers reported problems.

A similar situation happened in Vermont and a vendor took to YouTube to vent her frustration. The video caught the eye of Nothstein.

“It was frustrating to see the pattern that developed here and we all got the same excuses,” Nothstein said. “The more we publicized it, the more people started to come forward.”

In Burke’s dealings locally, there was a never a contract signed.

“That is our fault,” she said. “We thought trust in the brotherhood and the thin blue line was enough.”

Nothstein said she isn’t out any money, but won’t feel a sense of relief until local vendors, and others around the country, are made whole.

She is hopeful Burke’s criminal case and the publicity regarding his actions keep him from organizing any future races.

“I just don’t understand how someone could take money from the men and women who fight to protect us on a daily basis,” Nothstein said.

When the dust settles, Nothstein hopes to take what she learned in 2015 and 2016 and put together future races, “with trustworthy people in place,” to benefit first responders.