ROCKFORD, Mich. — The alleged false police report made by a former Rockford police lieutenant who was charged in connection to a hit-and-run crash was released Thursday.
Aaron Sawyer was charged with falsifying a report after telling Grand Rapids police a car hit him near Leonard Street NW and Scribner Avenue NW and left the scene.
The report shows that police obtained surveillance video from nearby businesses but found no proof of a crash. Investigators believe Sawyer made the false report six hours after an alleged hit-and-run crash in Georgetown Township, which Sawyer was later connected to.
Police also say data from the intel box in Sawyer's Rockford Department of Public Safety vehicle had been removed.
According to authorities, the hit-and-run happened at the intersection of Baldwin Street and 28th Avenue around 12:10 a.m. and caused significant damage to both vehicles. However, one of the vehicles, a black Ford Explorer, fled the scene before police arrived. That vehicle was later identified as Sawyer's unmarked work vehicle.
According to the report, "The crash caused both front and side air bag deployments which triggered an automatic call to 911 from the Ford Explorer's Flex system."
In December, Sawyer was placed on administrative leave amid the investigation into the hit-and-run, and he later resigned.
In 2015, Sawyer faced charges for driving while intoxicated in Plainfield Township. He was given a suspended sentence of probation after pleading guilty.
Sawyer was with the police force for 19 years.
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