Paul Helring, 47, a former Scranton police officer and former police union president, pleaded guilty Jan. 25 in federal court to theft concerning programs receiving federal funds, according to U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

Helring pleaded guilty to charges that allege from approximately March 2021 to May 2022, while serving as the coordinator of Scranton Police Department’s extra duty overtime program, he knowingly was paid over $5,000 in compensation for certain extra duty patrol shifts at local, Scranton-area, lower-income housing complexes that Helring claimed to work but did not in fact work.

Helring acknowledged that the monetary loss attributable to his conduct was between $15,000 and $40,000, and that he abused a position of public trust in a manner that significantly facilitated the commission of his offense. Helring also agreed to make restitution to the affected housing complexes in the amount of $17,831.40.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Public Corruption Task Force with assistance from the Office of Inspector General within the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffery St. John and Phillip J. Caraballo are prosecuting the case.

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is 10 years in jail.

Helring pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Robert D. Mariani.