Pentagon Official Placed on Leave Amid Theft Charges

A top official at the Pentagon was arrested after stealing license plates.

ByABC News
June 2, 2016, 6:29 PM
Bryan Whitman, a career member of the Senior Executive Service, was appointed Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs on May 23, 2010.
Bryan Whitman, a career member of the Senior Executive Service, was appointed Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs on May 23, 2010.
U.S. Department of Defense

— -- A high-ranking Pentagon official has been placed on administrative leave after being arrested for stealing license plates from a neighbor's nanny.

Pentagon Spokesman Gordon Trowbridge announced the suspension in a statement issued this afternoon. "In light of the pending criminal case involving Bryan Whitman, he has been placed on administrative leave while the department reviews this matter,” the statement read.

Whitman, a long-time senior staffer in the Pentagon's department of public affairs, was charged last month with three separate counts of misdemeanor theft after allegedly removing license plates from cars used by a neighbor's nanny.

He has been ordered to stay 1,000 feet away from the residence where the nanny works (except when accessing his alleyway) and has paid $1,000 in restitution. According to court documents, Whitman has entered a deferred prosecution agreement, which will allow the case to be dropped upon his completion of 32-hours of community service at a local food bank and under the condition he does not violate the restraining order.

The nanny told police that Whitman first left a threatening note on the her white Lexus SUV on April 4.

"I know you are misusing this visitor pass to park here daily," the note read, according to court public court documents. "If you do not stop I will report it, have your car towed and the resident who provided this to you will have his privileges taken away."

The Washington Post quoted a spokesman for the District’s Department of Transportation, who said her use of the visitor pass was legal.

Then, on two different occasions in early April, Whitman allegedly removed the license plates of the Lexus. Later that month, when the caretaker began using a minivan owned by the homeowner, Whitman also stole those license plates, the court documents allege.

The victims allegedly caught the suspect on video during the third incident after purchasing a video camera and mounting it on their property. The police identified the man in the video as Whitman.

Whitman later turned over the license plates to police after they came to his home with a search warrant.