The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is investigating allegations that public information officer Sgt. Stacy Bailey misused funds in the agency’s community services account, Police Chief Robert Merchant said.
Bailey has been suspended with pay since July 18, Merchant said.
Agent Kim Williams with the GBI’s Cleveland, Ga., office said Merchant requested the investigation.
Williams said the account is reserved for use with the department’s Explorer program, which shows 14- to 18-year-olds what it would be like to work in law enforcement.
Williams could not say when the investigation would be complete, but added that the GBI will meet with the Cherokee County District Attorney’s Office to present the findings.
When reached on Tuesday, Bailey said she’s been told not to talk about the allegations.
The GBI investigation is not the only turmoil Bailey had recently faced.
Last month, a Sandy Springs Police captain filed a report with the Cherokee Sheriff’s Office, alleging that Bailey had been making harassing phone calls to him.
The captain said he and Bailey had a year-long affair, which he broke off in early June after his wife of 19 years found out. He said he received between 30 and 40 calls and emails from Bailey since then, despite asking her not to contact him.
The captain also said he received a package from an unidentified Cherokee County man containing compromising photos of the two and a letter to his wife about the affair.
The captain said he has met with Merchant at least three times to inform him of the allegations.
Bailey has been with the Canton Police Department since February 2003.
She has been a long-time supporter of Canton’s Explorers’ program and Cherokee County Special Olympics. She is the treasurer of the Canton-Cherokee Triad and Seniors and Law Enforcement Together Council and a certified instructor with Canton-Cherokee radKIDS.
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