Millsboro PD officer indicted for drug tampering following investigation

MILLSBORO, Del. – A Millsboro Police officer has been indicted by the Department of Justice’s Division of Civil Rights & Public Trust for drug tampering.

On the morning of February 19th, 34-year-old Matthew Dufour was found unresponsive inside of his marked police vehicle, showing signs of a drug overdose. He was treated at the scene, including with naloxone, before being taken to a hospital for further treatment. Toxicology analysis later revealed that there was fentanyl, oxycodone, and cocaine in Dufour’s system.

Dufour was suspended earlier this year pending the outcome of the investigation.

Further investigation, including a complete audit of all drug evidence in Millsboro PD’s custody, indicated that Dufour had deliberately mishandled drug evidence set for destruction on as many as 13 occasions. In one of these instances, Dufour was found to have removed suspected cocaine from an evidence envelope, then, in an attempt to conceal his actions, replaced it with suspected cocaine from a separate case’s envelope and forged another Millsboro officer’s initials without his permission. Dufour also reportedly logged accompanying false entries into LEISS, a law enforcement information system. Other instances of similar misconduct occurred from November 2022 through February 2023, and the investigation ultimately revealed that Dufour only tampered with evidence on closed cases and that was set for destruction. However, the potential shadow that Dufour’s misconduct cast on drug evidence that he could have accessed led prosecutors in March to drop several pending criminal cases in accordance with their ethical and constitutional responsibilities.

Dufour is facing two counts of tampering with public records in the first degree, one count of second degree forgery, two counts of offering a false instrument for filing, four counts of obtaining controlled substances by theft, and one count of official misconduct.

Attorney General Kathy Jennings released the following statement on the indictment:

“We are empathetic to everyone grappling with drug use, and are grateful that the Defendant survived his overdose — but accountability matters, particularly in matters of public trust. The Defendant’s actions put his own life in danger, jeopardized the work of his department, and effectively undermined the lawful investigations of his fellow officers. I’m grateful as always to the staff of our Division of Civil Rights & Public Trust for securing this indictment, and to our partners in Millsboro PD who immediately did the right thing and Delaware State Police who helped lead the investigation.”

If convicted on all charges, Dufour faces a sentence range of 0 to 27 years.