Crime & Safety

Firefighter Charged With Pilfering From Captain

A Rancho Santa Margarita man has been charged with taking small amounts of cash while in the firehouse.

A firefighter who allegedly made a habit of taking $20 here and there from a co-worker has run afoul of the law.

Gregory Mark Konishi, 49, of Rancho Santa Margarita has been charged with stealing $40 from a fire captain's wallet.

According to the Orange County District Attorney's office, Konishi is charged with two misdemeanor counts of burglary and faces a sentence ranging from probation up to two years in jail if convicted.

Find out what's happening in Rancho Santa Margaritawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

At the time of the crime, Konishi was a firefighter with the Orange County Fire Authority and worked in an Irvine fire station.

Konishi resigned Tuesday after being notified of the OCFA's intent to begin termination proceedings following an internal investigation, according to spokesman Kris Concepcion.

Find out what's happening in Rancho Santa Margaritawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Prior to Sept. 28, 2012, a fire captain working in the same station as Konishi observed that small amounts of cash were missing periodically from his wallet. The captain subsequently placed a small, hidden video camera in his room at the fire station.

The D.A.'s office alleges that on Sept. 28, and Oct. 22, 2012, Konishi entered the victim’s room at the fire station and stole $20 each time from the victim’s wallet without the victim’s knowledge or consent.

The Irvine Police Department investigated this case.

Senior Deputy District Attorney Brett Brian of the Special Prosecutions Unit is prosecuting this case.

Konishi is scheduled to be arraigned Dec. 27, 2012, at 8:30 a.m., at Harbor Justice Center in Newport Beach.


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