Philly police bench a captain under investigation for paying himself with anti-violence grant

A youth boxing program a police captain founded, called Guns Down Gloves Up, did manage to get at least one gun out of circulation — his own service weapon.

The Philadelphia Police Department placed Capt. Nashid Akil on restricted duty and took his gun Wednesday, hours after an Inquirer report revealed that he is the subject of at least two investigations for improperly funneling anti-violence grant funds to himself and other police officers.

It marked the second time in four months that the department took action against Capt. Nashid Akil following an Inquirer report. In October, he was abruptly removed from leadership in North Philadelphia’s 22nd District and reassigned to Police Radio after an Inquirer investigation exposed his chronic absenteeism and disarray in the district he commanded.

Police spokesperson Sgt. Eric Gripp confirmed that Akil remained assigned to the radio room but is on restricted duty — a designation typically reserved for officers under investigation for serious disciplinary issues.

“We put officers on restricted duty when they are under investigation for something that they could be criminally charged for, or if it’s something departmentally that could lead to their termination,” Gripp said. “On restricted duty, their weapon is taken away from them and they no longer have their powers to take police action on behalf of the department.”

Akil has not been criminally charged. He did not respond to a request for comment.

» READ MORE: How a Philadelphia antiviolence grant improperly funneled $76,000 to city police staffers

Guns Down Gloves Up launched three years ago in the street in front of the 22nd District, and would go on to become Akil’s signature community engagement initiative. With his support, the city awarded a $392,000 anti-violence grant to Epiphany Fellowship Church and Villanova University to expand the boxing program and evaluate its outcomes.

In the grant application, Akil said he and his officers would volunteer their time. But the month after it was approved, he and nine other officers signed employment contracts with the program. The Inquirer obtained financial records showing that the officers were paid nearly $76,000 last year — more than a third of the total grant money spent.

Municipal employees are not allowed to be paid by city grant funds.

» READ MORE: The captain of a busy Philly police district is often absent. Yet he’s in line for promotion.

City officials halted payments on the grant on Nov. 29, a spokesperson said, amid two investigations into the program’s spending by the department’s Internal Affairs Division and the Office of the Inspector General, a fiscal watchdog that probes abuse of tax dollars.

One mayoral candidate, former City Councilmember Allan Domb, said in a statement this week that the situation is an “outrage” that highlights the need for an audit of the grant program. The city has already entered a $2.1 million contract with an outside organization to evaluate outcomes.

Erica Atwood, the deputy managing director who heads the office that awarded the grants, said she “absolutely” has concerns about how the money was spent. But she said that it did not indicate any systemic problem.

“There were questionable practices by individuals,” she said. “That doesn’t speak to the efficacy of the [grant] program.”