Citing financial problems and an ongoing divorce, former Slippery Rock University Chief of Police Michael Simmons admitted that he concocted a phony PayPal account in an alleged theft scheme, authorities said.

In all, according to an investigator with the state police's organized crime task force, Simmons stole $23,477.33 by submitting 35 fictitious receipts for equipment that was paid for with a university-owned credit card.

But the payments wound up in Simmons' own bank account, police said.

Police charged Simmons on Monday with four felonies — access device fraud, theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property and theft by deception.

He is to turn himself in for arraignment June 26 at the office of District Judge Bill O'Donnell in Slippery Rock. His preliminary hearing is scheduled that same day.

Simmons' attorney, Joseph Kecskemethy, did not return a phone call Tuesday.

The defendant's address on the criminal complaint is blacked out, which is highly unusual. Online court records show that he lives in Jackson Center, Mercer County.

The investigating officer, Trooper Todd Adamski, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

The police investigation began after an agreement was made between the defendant and university over his supposed lapse in attaining firearms qualification.

According to SRU, Simmons was placed on administrative leave Feb. 13, and he was fired Feb. 26.

Lt. Kevin Sharkey, who was named acting chief, initiated a review of the department's financial books.

Sharkey discovered “several discrepancies in equipment purchases and potentially missing police equipment,” according to charging documents.

SRU officials, in turn, conducted a report of Simmons' transactions made over about a year's time with the university-issued credit card.

Most of the transactions, the review found, were made to a vendor known as “PayPal POLICESTUFF,” documents said.

But when Sharkey tried an online search for the vendor's Web address, he found there was none.

The acting chief continued his review, this time looking for the equipment allegedly purchased by the defendant. Again, he came up empty for anything that came from PayPal POLICESTUFF.

During a Feb. 25 meeting with SRU officials, police said, Simmons admitted wrongdoing.

“Former Chief Simmons informed them he started a PayPal account,” according to Adamski's affidavit, “and all of the items listed under PayPal POLICESTUFF is all fictitious.”

He told them he was “going through a divorce and was having financial problems.”

Police said he also returned missing police department property that was identified during an inventory review. The property, documents said, included a Harley-Davidson jacket and a three-piece wooden dining set.

Investigators got a search warrant March 27 for Simmons' PayPal and bank accounts. They compared the allegedly fraudulent receipts that the defendant submitted to the credit card payments the university made.

“The analysis revealed the total loss to Slippery Rock University,” the affidavit said, “is $23,477.33.”

Adamski described Simmons as “cooperative” during a May 27 police interview. The defendant again allegedly acknowledged wrongdoing.

“Defendant Simmons related he created a fictitious PayPal business account and then would create an invoice,” the trooper said. “(He) would then email the invoice to himself, then submitted the invoice to be paid.”

He also repeated he was having “multiple financial issues,” Adamski said, “which made him create this scheme.”

Simmons provided police with written statements and allegedly told them he would make full restitution to the university.