The ongoing probe into the Massachusetts Environmental Police involves questions of ticket-fixing. Col. James McGinn, the head of the Environmental Police and Gov. Charlie Baker's campaign driver in 2014, was suspended without pay this week after the preliminary results of the internal probe. MassLive first reported the suspension. Ticket-fixing for friends is "certainly one of the elements of the review" being conducted by the state energy and affairs secretary, Matt Beaton, according to Gov. Baker. "It's my understanding that the folks at the secretary's office started a review of some operational, procedural issues recently, and based on the preliminary results of that investigation they suspended Colonel McGinn without pay, pending the conclusion of that investigation," Baker told reporters after speaking at an unrelated event at Harvard University. "And it's certainly my hope that that investigation wraps up soon," he added. McGinn is a retired State Police sergeant who earned $132,215 in 2017 for leading the Environmental Police. After McGinn was suspended without pay, Lt. Col. Anthony Abdal-Khabir took command and control the Environmental Police on Oct. 4. The Environmental Police enforces fish and game laws, as well as handle "protection of natural resources, homeland security and law enforcement, safety education, and accident investigation," according to its website. The Environmental Police has seen scrutiny for other issues, including from a WCVB report that showed officers at home instead of being on patrol. In an interview on Boston Herald Radio in 2016, Baker defended McGinn and said he was not a patronage hire. "The answer's no," Baker said, according to the State House News Service. "I've known Jim a long time and he has 20 years as a state police officer. He left the force as a sergeant, he worked for FEMA as a disaster recovery specialist." According to his LinkedIn page, McGinn also has degrees from Northeastern University, Westfield State University, and Massachusetts School of Law in Andover.<doc-sep>Hide Transcript Show Transcript WEBVTT OUR REPORTING DURING THE PAST FEW YEARS FOUND IT’S A DEPARTMENT LACKING OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY. WE HAVE ONE OF YOUR OFFICERS AT HOME FOR SIX HOURS. IS THAT ACCEPTABLE? >> WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE THAT AND TAKE ACTION. >> OUR UNDERCOVER INVESTIGATION FOUND SEVERAL OF HIS OFFICERS AT HOME AND NOT ON PATROL DURING THEIR SHIFT OTHERS WERE ALLOWED TO SPLIT THEIR SHIFTS TO CASH IN ON LUCRATIVE OVERTIME IN THE MIDDLE OF THEIR WORKDAY. DURING THOSE DETAILS, WE FOUND OFFICERS EATING ICE CREAM COOL SIDE, O SITTING IN THEIR TRUCKS INSTEAD OF MAKING SURE SWIMMERS WERE SAFE. IN THE WAKE OF OUR REPORT, THOSE SPLIT SHIFTS WERE SUPPOSED TO END AND TH GOVERNOR ORDERED AN INVESTIGATION. >> I TALKED TO THE FOLKS AT ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS THAT THEY NEED TO LOOK INTO SOME OF THE ISSUES THAT WERE RAISED BY THE REPORTED IF THERE ARE ISSUES OF PEOPLE BEHAVING INAPPROPRIATELY AND TREATING TAXPAYERS WITH LESS THAN THE RESPECT THAT THEY DESERVE, THEN WE WILL TAKE ACTION ON THAT. >> THE GOVERNOR RECENTLY CALL FOR GPS TO BE P BACK IN OFFICERS’ TRUCKS. DISCOVERED THEY WERE REMOVED AT MCGIN’S REQUEST. WHY WAS THAT TAKEN OUT? >> IT WAS TAKEN UP FOR A COST-SAVING MEASURE. >> WE ASKED WITH WHAT THE ISSUES WERE THAT LED TO THE SUSPICION -- SUSPENSION AND OTHER ISSUE Advertisement Head of Massachusetts Environmental Police suspended without pay Share Shares Copy Link Copy Col. James McGinn, the head of the Massachusetts Environmental Police, was suspended without pay Thursday pending an internal review. Officials said only that the suspension was related to a review of "operational issues. "Responsibilities of the environmental police include enforcing fish and game laws and registering boats, snowmobiles and ATVs.Command of the department was transferred to the office of Lt. Col. Anthony Abdal-Khabir.“Colonel McGinn is currently suspended without pay pending the completion of an internal review of operational issues at the Massachusetts Environmental Police," spokesman Peter Lorenz said. 5 Investigates has asked what those operational issues are, but so far no information has been provided.McGinn earned $132,215.30 in 2017, according to state payroll records. In 2016, the department's budget was approximately $10 million.McGinn, a former sergeant with the Massachusetts State Police, was appointed to the job by Gov. Charlie Baker. He was also Baker's campaign driver. 5 Investigates confronted McGinn in 2016 after observing environmental police officers spending time at home while on the clock. One officer spent six hours of his shift at home, a practice McGinn defended.McGinn said he was generally OK with his officers working from home when writing reports or washing their cruisers.Asked how many hours at home during shift would be acceptable, McGinn said: "It all depends. It all depends what type of report they're doing. We're a very unconventional police force. "5 Investigates also found that the GPS devices installed in Environmental Police officers' vehicles were deactivated in 2015 after the union asked for them to be removed. Previously the union and the administration had come to an agreement that allowed the department to keep the monitoring devices in the trucks for "fleet management," "dispatching" and "patrol analysis," but prohibited "trolling" or going on a "fishing expedition" in the GPS database looking for violations. Governor Baker recently called for GPS to be put back into officers' vehicles. We asked the department what the organizational issues were that led to McGinn's suspension and about other issues we're looking into but our questions haven't been answered.<doc-sep>Marcus Smart Says He Has Heard Racist Remarks From Celtics Fans: 'It's Sad And Sickening'Asked about Kyrie Irving's comments about Boston fans, Celtics guard Marcus Smart said that he is hoping that the Boston crowd will treat all players -- whether they're in a Celtics or a Nets uniform -- with respect. 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The head of the Massachusetts Environmental Police has been suspended without pay. A spokesman for the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, which oversees the police agency, said in a brief statement Thursday afternoon that Colonel James McGinn "is currently suspended without pay pending the completion of an internal review of operational issues at the Massachusetts Environmental Police." The spokesman, Peter Lorenz, offered no further information about the situation. Lt. Col. Anthony Abdal-Khabir is in control of the Massachusetts Environmental Police, effective Thursday. In November 2016, Gov. Charlie Baker said the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs was investigating a pattern WCVB-TV uncovered of environmental police officers spending portions of the work day at home and receiving overtime for patrolling parks and pools. "I've talked to the folks at Environmental Affairs that they need to look through some of the issues that were raised by the report and if there are issues associated with people behaving inappropriately and treating the taxpayers with less than the respect that they deserve, then we'll take action on that," Baker said at the time. During a Herald Radio appearance in September 2016, Baker said "no" when asked if he thought it looked like patronage to have McGinn, his former campaign driver, lead the state's environmental police. "The answer's no," Baker said. "I've known Jim a long time and he has 20 years as a state police officer. He left the force as a sergeant, he worked for FEMA as a disaster recovery specialist." More recently, on Aug. 28, Baker said the environmental police were dealing with issues around "split shifts," which he said are appropriate in many cases. Baker said the environmental police have "done a lot of things over the course of the last couple of years to clean up their act on that stuff," but that there was "always more to be done" and he was looking forward to the use of GPS devices.