Former Washingtonville cop gets month in jail for impersonating U.S. Marshal

A former Washingtonville police officer has been sentenced to a month in jail for impersonating a U.S. Marshal.

Logan Malik learned his sentence on Thursday as he appeared before U.S. District Court Judge Bridget Brennan in Cleveland. In June, a jury found Malik guilty after one day of deliberations.

In addition to the 30-day sentence, Malik was fined $1000 and placed on supervised release for one year.

Prosecutors say Malik pretended to be a Marshal on April 24 of last year, claiming he was gathering information about a hate group known as skinheads.

Malik, who was arrested after local police were called to the Holiday Inn and Sheetz gas station in Boardman, had already pleaded not guilty in Mahoning County Court to impersonating a peace officer. The local charges were dropped after prosecutors learned of the federal indictment.

Malik allegedly told a witness that U.S. Marshals had arrested five "skinheads" earlier at the mall and said the witness should "call him, not 911" if any "skinheads" were spotted in the area.

The witness said Malik then wrote down a phone number on a piece of paper, alongside the words "U.S. Marshal Offc. Malik" and "Northeast Ohio Violent Crimes Task Force."

The witness told police Malik had a gun and a badge on his hip that "appeared to be fake." The witness also said Malik had police radio traffic coming over his cell phone.

When the witness became suspicious and requested a business card, they told police Malik could not provide one.

According to the police report, when Malik stepped out of the vehicle he was wearing a police tactical vest, a holster on his right hip, and a Washingtonville Police badge on his left hip.

Boardman Police say Malik was employed at the time as a Washingtonville Police Officer. Police also say they located a Leetonia Police badge, where Malik was previously employed.

Malik told police that he was at the Holiday Inn asking about people that the U.S. Marshals are looking for because his dream is to become a U.S. Marshal. Malik also told officers that he never identified himself as a federal law enforcement officer but "jokingly told someone at Sheetz that he had a warrant for them, but quickly told him he was joking around."

Washingtonville Police Chief Ken Faust said Malik was hired in January 2022 but was no longer employed by the department four months later because of this incident.

Leetonia Police Chief Allen Haueter told 21 News that Malik previously worked for the village and was "encouraged to resign" due to "performance" issues. The chief did not elaborate on details.