Ex-NYC cop who allegedly lied gets job with Rockland County Attorney

A retired NYPD officer who allegedly lied under oath has landed a sweet spot at the Rockland County DA’s office.

The Bureau requested a special state waiver to hire Matthew Wohl for a confidential investigator job that pays $94,000 a year on top of his police pension. The exemptions are required for government employees who wish to collect both their pensions and an annual salary in excess of $35,000 from government agencies.

The former police officer, who resigned from the NYPD in July 2021, testified in the 2005 trial of a protester arrested during the 2004 Republican National Convention in Manhattan. He said he helped carry the kicking and screaming protesters down the steps of the New York Public Library.

However, the video contradicted Wohl’s account and reportedly showed the protester walking down the stairs alone with the officer nowhere in sight. This led to the prosecution dropping the case and the FBI opening an investigation. It does not appear that Wohl has been charged and it is unclear if he has been disciplined.

Wohl landed on a list of officials with potential credibility issues maintained by the Bronx Attorney’s Office.

The Post reported this week that at least 16 police officers arrested between 2017 and 2021 were allowed to keep their jobs, although an NYPD administrative trial judge found them guilty of the alleged acts.

The prosecutor’s office claimed it had to hire Wohl because two other applicants did not meet minimum qualifications for the position, according to a government document analyzing the waiver request obtained by The Post. But the document oddly went on to list the minimum qualifications as “N/A.”

State law requires that agencies requesting exceptions must demonstrate that they have “extensive recruiting efforts to fill such a position” and that “there are no non-retired persons available who are qualified to perform the duties of such a position.” are”.

According to a source, Wohl is one of six look-alikes in DA Tom Walsh’s office.

Among the others with waivers is Peter Walker, a former detective and the public information officer for the Clarkstown Police Department in Rockland. He’s now pulling down a $191,000 salary as chief detective at the DA’s office — a significant rise in rank — plus a $144,000 pension, records show.

“It’s absolutely amazing,” said a source familiar with the prosecutor’s office.

Neither Walsh nor Walker, who are listed as press contacts for the office, have responded to requests for comment. A man who answered a phone number from Wohl said he was not the retired officer.