Ex Philly Cop Gets Probation For Taking Seized Porsche To Prom
By Alex Lloyd Gross
A former Philadelphia Police Officer assigned to the narcotics unit got one year of probation after he confessed to “borrowing” a 2018 Porsche Cayenne SUV,. He was sentenced January 16 2020.
In April 2019, then-Officer Coolen seized a 2018 Porsche Cayenne SUV with a California registration during a narcotics investigation. The Porsche was held as evidence and was placed in the Philadelphia Police Department Narcotics Bureau Headquarters’ secure parking lot. Coolen signed a property receipt storing the vehicle as evidence. Two weeks later, the PPD Internal Affairs Unit received information from the bureau about the possible theft or unauthorized use of the vehicle, and opened an investigation.
After reviewing video surveillance footage of the storage area, investigators discovered that on April 25, 2019, Coolen drove into the secure parking lot with his personal pickup truck, parked near the Porsche, entered into the seized vehicle, and drove it away. Two days later, the Porsche was returned to the secure parking lot and the driver, who is not identified on video because it was dark, drove off the lot in Coolen’s vehicle.
It turned out that he used the vehicle as luxury transportation to take his step daughter to her prom. He did not have permission to do that. One of Coolen’s fellow officers saw what happened and notified his superiors as to his suspicions. An investigation was opened and police found a lot of evidence against Coolen, that included
- Doorbell security surveillance video from Coolen’s next door neighbor’s house that showed the Porsche parked at Coolen’s home;
- Photographic evidence that the Porsche was parked at Coolen’s home;
- Coolen’s fingerprints on the Porsche’s GPS navigation system;
- Electronic data recovered from the GPS system, along with other evidence, that indicated Coolen used the vehicle for his stepdaughter’s prom; and
- A Philadelphia Police officer’s statement to Internal Affairs in which the officer said that he witnessed Coolen walk over to the Porsche, get in on the driver’s side, and drive out of the parking lot..
This evidence was presented to Coolen who resigned from the department. He was arrested and charged with Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle which is a misdemeanor. .District Attorney Larry Krasner issued a statement which read in part: “:Former Officer Coolen has since turned himself in, resigned from the Police Department, and taken responsibility for his crime. It is never easy, but it is always right, to hold a friend or colleague accountable when they do wrong. I thank the PPD Internal Affairs Unit and my office’s Special Investigation Unit for their hard work in bringing this case to a just conclusion.”