Wichita police employee on paid leave for possible mishandling of sensitive document

Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan has placed a Wichita Police Department employee on paid leave pending an investigation by the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office into possible mishandling of a sensitive police document.

In a Friday afternoon news release, Sullivan announced that he learned of “the possible mishandling of a sensitive police document by a department member” on Tuesday morning.

“Given the nature of the allegation, on Tuesday evening I turned the investigation over to Sedgwick County Sheriff Jeff Easter who has started a comprehensive investigation,” Sullivan said in the release.

The news release does not identify the employee or give any details on the type of information was contained in the document, or how it was discovered.

“As this is now an active investigation, it would be inappropriate for me to provide any further comment or information at this time,” Sullivan said.