Trooper pulled over women to hit on them, then faked records of it, state says

TRENTON — A New Jersey state trooper would routinely pull over women to hit on them, then faked records to cover it up, authorities said.

Trooper Marquice Prather, 37, of Linden, N.J., was arrested late Friday, according to the Division of Criminal Justice. He's been charged with third-degree tampering with public records or information and fourth-degree falsifying or tampering with records.

The trooper was released without bail, and suspended without pay from his position, the DCJ said.

According to its announcement of the charges Monday, the state police Office of Professional Standards investigated "a number of incidents" related to Prather, in which he allegedly pulled over women between the ages of 20 and 35, and tried to get them to agree to dates or to giving him their phone numbers.

During the stops, he'd intentionally deactivate his wireless microphone and falsely report that it malfunctioned, the DCJ said. He's also accused of falsely reporting the gender of drivers he pulled over "to disguise the fact that he stopped a high number of females," it said.

According to the DCJ, several women came forward to file complaints — and then more gave statements describing the same sort of activity.

It's not clear from the announcement just how many motor vehicle stops were involved.

Third-degree charges carry a sentence of three to five years in state prison and a fine of up to $15,000, and the fourth degree charges carry a sentence of up to 18 months in prison and a fine of up to $10,000, the DCJ noted in its announcement.

According to state public records, Prather makes a salary of $60,749.94, and has been a trooper since 2013.

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