Police: Ex-cop charged in theft ‘related’ to double homicide

LORAIN, Ohio (AP) — A former Cleveland police officer has been charged in connection with the theft of $200,000 from an ATM company where she worked, and authorities believe the theft is tied to a double homicide.

Tyra Parker, 24, of Euclid, was arrested Thursday on charges of felony theft, falsifying a police report and obstructing justice. It wasn’t known Friday if she has retained an attorney, and authorities say she has not been charged in the deaths of Abril Mills, 28, and Jerhonda Edwards, 29, who were shot to death Sunday on a street in Lorain.

Parker joined the Cleveland force in 2018, but resigned last September amid an internal investigation in which she was accused of improper conduct, according to Cleveland.com. She eventually joined the ATM company, where her job was to stock the machines with cash.

Lorain police said Parker called police Feb. 3 and reported the theft. She told them she went to a Family Dollar store and then traveled to her next stop, where she realized the money was missing, police said.

As officers questioned her further, authorities say Parker changed her story and eventually stopped cooperating with police.

Lorain police said detectives found evidence that Parker “was involved” in the theft. They also developed information that the theft case is “related” to the double homicide, but did not disclose further details.