NC COP Pleads GUILTY to Felony in Theft of Arrestee's Money!-The Companion Blog

The Fall Guy: What the Henry Chapman Case Might Really Tell Us About CMPD

On its face, the Henry Chapman story reads like a classic “bad apple” case. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department officer steals $900 from a suspect, gets caught, gets fired, gets charged. Case closed.

But many people brought up the possibility of a broader conspiracy as it relates to this case. Now, that’s not new. People have wild imaginations. Most of the time, they’re just paranoia laced ramblings from the comment section. But, maybe that’s not the case here.

Watch the bodycam footage. Pay attention to the tone in the room. And then ask yourself: was Chapman just the thief? Or was he the fall guy?

Before we go too far, if you haven’t seen the video, I suggest checking it out so you have context for this discussion. Here it is:

The Reactions Were Stranger Than the Crime

Here’s what happened. Chapman transported a man named Moon to the division office. Moon had nearly $8,000 in cash when he was taken into custody. But when he arrived, he noticed some of his money was missing — and said so. On camera. Repeatedly. Calmly.

He was in handcuffs. He wasn’t making threats. He was clearly upset, but who wouldn’t be? You’re in custody, and someone who swore to protect and serve you just took a grand out of your pocket and stashed it in his patrol car.

The officers didn’t rush to check on the claim. They didn’t go into “integrity mode.”

They scolded HIM—THE VICTIM!

A Pattern, Not an Outlier?

This didn’t happen in a vacuum. CMPD was already reeling from other internal scandals involving money and missing evidence. If you Google “CMPD money scandal 2024,” you’ll find a few uncomfortable parallels.

So maybe Chapman was greedy. Maybe he did act alone. But when the reaction inside the room feels like grief — not outrage — you have to wonder: was he just the guy who got caught while everyone else got to quietly wash their hands?

In addition to Chapman being charged and convicted for stealing Moon’s money. two other CMPD officers were arrested in clsoe enough succession that the local news told a story entangling all of them.

Warith Muhammad:

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) Lieutenant Warith Muhammad was arrested on April 16, 2024, and charged with felony financial transaction card fraud and felony conspiracy to commit financial transaction card fraud. The charges stem from an incident involving his wife, Debbie Muhammad, who was terminated from her position at Re Salon and Spa Inc. in April 2023. Following her termination, Debbie allegedly used the company's credit card to make a $1,600 donation to Masjid Ash Shaheed, a mosque the couple attended. The donation account was controlled by Warith Muhammad, who then transferred the funds to his personal bank account and issued a $1,550 check to Debbie. Court documents indicate that Warith coached Debbie to claim she was an authorized user of the company credit card.

Joel Medina:

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) Officer Joel Medina was arrested and charged with felony extortion and disclosure of private images. The charges stem from allegations that Medina threatened to share sexually explicit photos and videos of a person unless he was paid $10,000. The incident occurred outside of his official duties. Following an interview with CMPD’s Special Victims Division, Medina was taken into custody and placed on unpaid administrative leave pending the outcome of an internal investigation.

Brandy Casperman:

Most notably, Officer Brandy Casperman was the officer telling Moon he needed to deescalate. That he needed to “bring it down a notch.” Because apparently, the appropriate emotional response to being robbed by the police — is no emotional response at all.

It wasn’t just inappropriate. It was revealing.

When No One Seems Surprised, You Should Be Concerned

What followed next said more than the theft itself. Chapman’s fellow officers didn’t seem angry. His sergeant didn’t even look surprised. And when the hidden $900 was found in his cruiser, no one reacted like they’d been blindsided.

Instead, they looked... disappointed. Sad, even. The loved on Chapman after the fact

But not furious. Not betrayed. Not even offended by the position his actions had them in/

And if you’re really a by-the-book officer who just discovered your coworker is a thief? You should be pissed. You should feel disgusted — not empathetic.

If I were Chapman’s supervisor and I didn’t see this coming, I’d be livid. The position he put me in. The credibility he cost our department. The headlines we’d now wear. Unless... I knew all along.

That’s the question.

The Casperman Connection — and the Loyalty Problem

Officer Brandy Casperman — the one telling Moon to calm down — has a backstory too. A quick search shows she was the subject of a GoFundMe campaign in 2020 after sustaining serious injuries in the line of duty.

If you want to read all about it, the campaign is still up. Here is the link:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/cmpdpolice-officer-brandy-casperson

So maybe Casperman’s instincts were about keeping the situation under control. Maybe her response was more about loyalty than corruption. But the fact that she needed money, and that a fellow officer started a fundraising campaign a couple years prior that failed to meet its goal, at least invites some scrutiny. Even if her response to Moon’s pleading for help was more about scene management, or worse, loyalty to her fellow officer, that’s part of the problem. Loyalty should be to the truth, to the law, and if a choice must be made, to the citizen.

Damage Control Over Justice

Chapman entered an Alford plea. Got probation. Lost his badge. CMPD released the footage only after being legally forced to. There was no news conference declaring zero tolerance for corruption. No public commitment to review internal practices. Just a quiet burial.

So was this justice? Or was this containment?

In Closing

The Real Questions

• Why wasn’t anyone visibly angry at Chapman?

• Why was the victim told to calm down — instead of being heard?

• Why did the department only act after the evidence left them no choice?

• And why does this whole thing feel like a cover closing, not a case closing?

We may never know how deep this went. But silence is rarely innocent. And sadness without accountability isn’t integrity — it’s just PR.

If Chapman was the only one who did wrong, CMPD sure didn’t act like it.

And if he wasn’t? That might be the real story.

Thanks for reading,

—SDL