Manhunt underway for Roy McGrath, former chief of staff to the governor of Maryland

Federal authorities announced a manhunt on Tuesday for Roy McGrath – a former chief of staff to former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) – after McGrath failed to appear in Baltimore court on Monday for a a string of fraud charges that could land him in jail for decades if convicted.

The US Marshals Service in Baltimore “launched an interstate investigation into the fugitives”, the marshals tweeted on Tuesday. “He is now seeking to apprehend the former Maryland governor’s top aide after he failed to appear in court on Monday, March 13.”

McGrath was indicted in October 2021 for allegedly defrauding the Maryland Environmental Service of $233,647. He had assured the MES that Hogan, who appointed him to head the public company in 2016, had approved the sum as severance pay.

McGrath was also accused of transferring funds from the MES to an art museum of which he sat on the board. He allegedly used the funds for a related pledge and more than $14,000 in tuition, and falsified time sheets for two vacations while running the MES.

In an October 2021 statement, the Justice Department said McGrath was “personally enriched” from March 2019 to December 2020. In June 2022, the Justice Department updated the amount of funds defrauded to $276,731 and further accused McGrath of recording conversations with senior state officials. .

Charged with wire fraud, theft in programs receiving federal funds, falsifying records in federal investigations and violating state wiretapping law, McGrath pleaded not guilty and was released on parole. provided that he surrenders his passport and returns to court on order.

Joseph Murtha, McGrath’s lawyer, told various media that he had no information on his client’s whereabouts. “I hope he is safe and that we will have the opportunity to speak to each other in the near future,” he told NBC News.

Hogan hired McGrath as deputy chief of staff in 2015 before appointing him to lead the MES the following December. McGrath returned as Hogan’s chief of staff in June 2020, but resigned in August when reports of his fraudulent dismissal emerged.

“It is with regret that I have accepted the resignation of Roy McGrath as Chief of Staff,” Hogan said in a statement at the time. “Roy has been a deeply valued member of our administration, and our state is best for his dedicated service…I have always known that Roy was someone of the highest character, and I wish him well in his endeavours. future.”

“To me, this whole subject is simply the sad politics of personal destruction,” McGrath said in his own statement, “and at this time we cannot afford unnecessary distractions from the critical work that the Governor and his crew.”

McGrath was charged more than a year after he stepped down as Hogan’s chief of staff. Now a wanted fugitive, he faces several decades behind bars if convicted on all counts.