House Republicans are demanding records tied to an internal Metropolitan Police Department investigation after more than a dozen Washington, D.C., police officials were placed on leave amid allegations that crime statistics were manipulated to make the nation’s capital appear safer than it actually was.
Rep. James Comer (R-KY), chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, said Tuesday that the department’s move to terminate officials allegedly involved in manipulating crime data vindicated the committee’s long-running investigation into MPD leadership.
“The D.C. Metropolitan Police Department’s decision to terminate officials responsible for manipulating crime data and cultivating a culture of fear to advance their agenda is a step in the right direction,” Comer said in a statement. “But make no mistake: these terminations are a direct result of the House Oversight Committee’s work.”
Comer also took aim at Democrats who dismissed the investigation as politically motivated, arguing that lawmakers and district officials “should be ashamed” for “running cover for corrupt MPD officials and labeling this Committee’s investigation as a ‘political stunt.’”
That criticism was amplified last year by Democrats on the committee who accused Republicans of weaponizing oversight powers to target Washington officials and inflate political attacks over crime in the nation’s capital.
“From start to finish, it has been clear that Oversight Republicans’ failed investigation was an assault on reality at the behest of an unstable President angry at a police department for doing its job,” a Democratic staff report from Dec. 19 reads.
The latest developments follow 13 MPD officials who were placed on administrative leave Tuesday, as interim Police Chief Jeffrey Carroll announced at a press conference that disciplinary proceedings had begun in connection to the department’s internal affairs investigation.
Interim Chief Carroll Provides Departmental Update https://t.co/637Lm03Ey1
— DC Police Department (@DCPoliceDept) May 5, 2026
The department has already initiated the process of terminating some employees allegedly connected to the manipulation scheme, according to FOX 5 DC.
The investigation centers on accusations that MPD officials downgraded or altered crime classifications to make violent crime trends appear lower than they actually were.
Comer launched the congressional inquiry in August after whistleblower disclosures alleged that then-Chief Pamela Smith pressured commanders to manipulate crime figures. Smith later resigned in December after several senior commanders participated in transcribed interviews with congressional investigators.
A subsequent Oversight Committee staff report alleged that MPD leadership fostered a culture of intimidation and retaliation, pressuring officers to alter reporting practices to preserve the appearance of declining crime.
The DC Police Union on Tuesday welcomed the reported disciplinary actions, calling them a “long-overdue step toward justice and the restoration of integrity within MPD,” according to a press release.
Union officials alleged that commanders downgraded serious offenses — including robberies, burglaries, assaults with dangerous weapons, and motor vehicle thefts — to fabricate low crime numbers while violent crime actually increased.
The union also pointed to federal crime reporting data it said contradicted public claims by district officials that crime had dramatically declined.
MPD REMOVES TOP OFFICIALS IN DEPARTMENT RESTRUCTURING AMID CONCERNS ABOUT CRIME DATA MANIPULATION
Smith has repeatedly denied directing anyone to manipulate crime statistics and previously defended the department’s crime reduction efforts under her leadership.
A spokesperson for House Oversight Committee Democrats did not respond to a request for comment.
