A police detective in Milwaukee tasked with investigating a fellow officer’s misuse of the department’s Flock license plate reader camera system has now been accused of misusing it himself.

The detective is the latest in a growing list of police officers around the country accused of abusing the Flock Safety technology, which records the license tag of every vehicle that passes one of the company’s cameras.

The technology is supposed to be used to help solve crimes and locate wanted suspects. But a study by the civil rights group Institute for Justice found at least 21 cases nationwide since 2024 in which officers have been accused of accessing Flock data for personal use. Most of those have faced criminal charges, the institute found, and have either resigned or been fired from their police agencies.

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The Milwaukee detective, 34-year-old Tehrangi Chapman, was charged with felony misconduct in public office and misdemeanor misuse of GPS after a months-long investigation into claims that he used the technology to stalk a victim and their family.

The victim, according to court filings viewed by FOX6 News Milwaukee, made an anonymous call to the Milwaukee Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division in February and accused a detective of placing a GPS device on their vehicle.

Although the victim declined to name the detective or file an official complaint “out of concern for the ramifications of doing so,” Internal Affairs came to believe that Chapman was responsible. 

20 searches alleged

A previous audit of the department’s Flock system, which had been conducted when Chapman and another officer were investigating allegations against now former officer Josue Ayala in December, revealed that Chapman had searched the victim’s license plate 17 times between January 2024 and January 2025.

During the searches, according to court documents, Chapman cited “test” and “training” as justification. FOX6 Milwaukee also says Chapman looked up another person’s car three times. The police department suspended Chapman in March.

During an interview with the district attorney’s investigators in May, Chapman reportedly admitted using the Flock system to track two people “in violation of the policies of the Milwaukee Police Department” and placing the GPS device on one vehicle. The victim said they found the tracking device attached to their vehicle in January 2024.

In a statement, Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman said “no one is above the law.”

“We expect all members of this department — both sworn officers and professional staff — to uphold the highest ethical standards,” he said. “We will continue to take decisive action to preserve public trust and honor the values of this organization.”

Chapman is expected to appear in court on July 17.

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