D.C. Police lieutenant charged with sexual solicitation of a minor

The first openly gay chairman of Washington, D.C.’s police union and member of its gay and lesbian unit, has been arrested on child sex abuse charges.

Lt. Matthew Mahl, a 23-year veteran of the Metropolitan Police Department and LaPlata, Md. resident, was taken into custody in Harford County, Md. and charged with solicitation of sex from a minor and solicitation of child pornography. A judge ordered him held without bond, and a preliminary hearing is expected in May.

According to court documents, Mahl allegedly engaged in weeks of sexually explicit conversations on a gay dating forum on Reddit with someone he believed to be a 15-year-old boy. Investigators say the individual was an undercover sheriff’s deputy operating an online sting operation.

During the exchanges, Mahl allegedly sent explicit images of himself, including photos taken in uniform and inside his police office. He is also accused of requesting sexually explicit images and arranging a meeting after school for what prosecutors say he believed would be a sexual encounter.

Authorities say Mahl used his real name during the conversations and identified himself as a D.C. police lieutenant, at one point acknowledging the risk of being caught and stating he could “lose everything.” When he arrived at the meeting location, he was arrested.

Mahl’s arrest has drawn particular attention due to his role within the department and his status as the first openly gay chairman of the D.C. police union. Mahl served as chairman of the D.C. Fraternal Order of Police for one term, between 2016 and 2018. In 2017, union members tried and failed to have him removed as chairman.

Mahl served as acting supervisor of the police department's Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit in 2013 when he was a sergeant. D.C. police officials placed him on administrative leave and suspended his police powers that same year while investigating an undisclosed allegation. He was later cleared by the department.

Charges such as this not only have major impact on the public's trust of law enforcement and destroying the department's image, but speaks to those in positions of leadership abusing their authority to sexually groom and harm children.