Off-duty cop charged with fleeing police, speeding and reckless driving in Washington County

An off-duty officer with the Greene Washington Regional Police Department was charged after authorities said he was speeding and did not pull over when officers tried to initiate a traffic stop in Washington County. 

Nathan Ferree is charged with one count of fleeing a police officer, speeding and reckless driving in connection with the incident last month. 

According to court paperwork, just before noon on March 22, Ferree was driving through the Monongahela area and onto State Route 837, driving nearly 90 miles per hour in 35- and 45-mile-per-hour zones. Authorities said officers in two marked Monongahela City Police Department vehicles noticed him and followed him for about 1 mile with lights and sirens on. 

He eventually stopped and told police he was not "paying attention" and did not see or hear them, according to the court paperwork. Police said they saw an open 12-pack of spiked hard iced tea and an open can.

William DeForte, chief of the regional police force, said the department was already in the process of terminating Ferree's employment. He no longer works for the department, DeForte said 

"Nathan has a security business on the side," the chief told KDKA. "And Nathan was more interested in cultivating that and not cultivating the police department duties."

DeForte showed KDKA's Ferree's resignation letter from one day after his March arrest. It said, in part, that he would " like to pursue other private security opportunities and I am happy and grateful to leave a full-time position in good standing."

Ferree was hired in 2019 as a sergeant. KDKA reached out to him on Wednesday, and he said, "No comment."