Two Schuylkill County Police Officers Indicted by a Federal Grand Jury

A pair of Schuylkill County police officers have been indicted by a federal grand jury in connection with an incident that happened in Minersville in February 2022.

A federal grand jury handed down the indictments against co-defendants Harry Brown, 43, and Richard Clink, 50. They have been arraigned on charges of depriving a man of his civil rights by using unreasonable force during a traffic stop and then falsifying reports and covering up information about the incident.

According to information received by The Canary, Brown is currently the Police Chief at Mahanoy Township and works part-time for Saint Clair Police. Clink is a patrolman at Mahanoy Township.

At the time of the incident, both were employed as patrolmen at Minersville Police Dept.

During a Feb. 2, 2022, traffic stop, Brown and Clink allegedly used unreasonable force on a suspect, David Plappert, they had detained during a traffic stop. The suspect in that case had an active arrest warrant at the time of the stop.

That suspect was asked to get out of his vehicle and police began to take him into custody. A struggle ensued.

Plappert filed a civil lawsuit against Brown and Clink over the incident. The case was settled out of court.

In his complaint, Plappert claimed that he suffered a right anterior frontal scalp subgalea hematoma, bilateral periorbital and left pre maxillary injury, and lost multiple teeth.

He says he was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital in Pottsville and then transferred to the Intensive Care Unit at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest.

According to a release from the US Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania and US Attorney Gerard Karam, the indictment alleges that Brown and Clink aided and abetted each other during this incident and used unreasonable force that led to bodily injury of Plappert.

Further, the indictment alleges that “Brown and Clink falsified, covered up, and made false entries into police reports documenting the arrest and their use of force during that arrest.”

According to Minersville Police, an internal investigation into this incident was launched on Feb. 3, 2022. They say Brown and Clink, in their reports of the incident, alleged that Plappert exited his vehicle and took a defensive stance and “squared up” with the officers.

Brown and Clink alleged in their report that they had to use substantial force to subdue Plappert and both sustained injuries while taking him into custody.

As part of that investigation, surveillance video was sought and Plappert was interviewed. Plappert said that he tried explaining to Brown and Clink that he was taking care of the warrant that was out for his arrest.

Following that part of the investigation, Minersville Police say they placed Brown and Clink on administrative leave pending a further investigation.

Several weeks after the incident, Minersville police say, video of the encounter was obtained. After witnessing the video and completing their investigation, Minersville Police say Brown and Clink were suspended pending termination proceedings. They determined that Brown and Clink provided false verbal and written statements on official documents throughout the course of the investigation.

Minersville Police say they then transferred the case to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

In a statement released by Minersville Police, they say, “During the investigation, the Minersville Police Department cooperated completely and worked hand in hand with the FBI to assure complete transparency and accountability. The mission of the Minersville Police Department is to protect and serve our citizens fairly and with integrity.”

It’s important to note that an indictment is purely an allegation and Brown and Clink are presumed innocent until found guilty in court. Assistant US Attorney James Buchanan is prosecuting the case.

According to the US Attorney’s Office, a guilty verdict in this case could result in up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

Phone calls to Mahanoy Township and Saint Clair were not returned by the time this post was published.

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