Amtrak honors Investigator Joseph O’Keefe as 2016 Police Department Officer of the Year

Written by Maggie Lancaster, assistant editor
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Investigator Joseph O'Keefe is the 2016 Amtrak Police Department Officer of the Year.

Amtrak Chief of Police Neil Trugman presented the award to O’Keefe for his significant contributions to the Amtrak community, including the discovery of a large-scale auto theft ring in Pennsylvania and Delaware.

Amtrak chose O’Keefe based on his commitment to hard work, his investigative skills and dedication to duty have been a major contribution to our efforts to reduce fraud and improve processes company-wide.

O’Keefe is based in Philadelphia. He was able to link several thefts of rental cars from Wilmington Station to a large-scale auto-theft ring operating out of Delaware and Pennsylvania. O’Keefe was able to connect the thefts to other similar crimes in Maryland and ultimately build a strong case for the Federal Bureau of Investigation to prosecute.

O’Keefe’s work has also led to the reduction of online reservation fraud throughout the Amtrak system and his investigations have been a valuable asset to multiple law enforcement agencies including the United States Secret Service, the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, the Diplomatic Security Service and the United States Attorney’s Office.

O’Keefe career with Amtrak Police began in 2011. After working as a patrol officer, he was promoted to the rank of Investigator in 2012. During his career with Amtrak Police, he has received the Exceptional Achievement Award, two Distinguished Unit Citations and six Officer of the Month Awards.

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