TOLEDO, Ohio — Robert Austin, a former Sylvania Township police lieutenant, has pleaded guilty to grand theft after admitting to improperly claiming benefits for a second spouse on his township-sponsored insurance plan. The plea was entered on December 3, 2025, in Lucas County Common Pleas Court.
According to the Lucas County Prosecutor’s Office, Austin was charged with fifth-degree grand theft and agreed to pay $69,698.48 in restitution. As part of the agreement, other pending charges against him were dismissed.
Investigators found that between January 1, 2016, and May 1, 2023, Austin listed a second spouse on his benefits plan while still legally married to his first spouse. This led Sylvania Township to pay out insurance benefits that would not have been provided if Austin’s marital status had been accurately reported.
Prosecutor Julia R. Bates stated, “We are pleased with this agreement as Mr. Austin agreed to repay in full the taxpayers of Sylvania Township. The citizens of Sylvania Township are the victims in this case, and the State of Ohio will not tolerate theft while in office.”
Sentencing is scheduled for January 5, 2026, at 1 p.m. in courtroom eight at the Lucas County Courthouse. Assistant prosecutors Aaron Hill and Robert Worthington handled the case for the Lucas County Prosecutor’s Office.