Hub cop accused of lying to fly armed

A 27-year veteran of the Boston Police Department is accused of repeatedly lying to federal officials so he could fly while armed from Logan International Airport on personal trips.

Sgt. Detective Bruce E. Smith, a 53-year-old Boston cop who made nearly $259,000 last year, was hauled into federal court yesterday to answer charges he made false statements to TSA agents over 28 flights from 2011 to 2017.

He’s accused of carrying his gun with him on flights and repeatedly making unlawful entry through airport security — charges that can carry a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

Prosecutors say Smith of Randolph also twice escorted a friend through Logan and avoided security by claiming he was a “dignitary” under his official police escort, when in fact the pal was a friend of Smith’s who runs a mobile HIV clinic.

Police Commissioner William B. Evans said in a statement that the federal charges Smith faces are “troubling” and insisted cops “have an obligation and a responsibility to enforce and obey laws, not exploit them for personal convenience.”

“I hold my officers to the highest of standards and expect that they conduct themselves in a truthful and professional manner both on and off duty,” Evans said.

Smith, released on a $50,000 bond, was appointed in 1989 and is currently a detective supervisor assigned to District E-13 in Jamaica Plain. He was placed on paid administrative leave, police said.

BPD officers who want to fly armed need to be on official police business, to have completed a TSA flying armed training course, and have permission from a supervisor, according to court papers.

Smith, who never completed a flying armed course, repeatedly flew on personal business with his department firearm and consistently said he got approval from a BPD superintendent who told officials he never signed off on the armed travel, court papers said.

Following a Nov. 22 trip to North Carolina, Ryan said Smith put in for — and was paid — $289 in overtime for a four-hour intelligence meeting at BPD headquarters he did not attend.

During a March 3 trip to North Carolina, Ryan said TSA security personnel asked Smith who the dignitary was in his company. Smith allegedly replied, “I am not at liberty to divulge that information.” He later told them his friend was an “entertainer.”

Smith’s frequent travel companion has not been charged.

In February 2012, Smith was one of nine black Boston police officers who sued the city in federal court for failing to promote them after passing the lieutenant’s promotional exam, arguing the test they took has a “severe disparate impact on minority test takers” and violates title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Smith took the test in 2008. The case is still ongoing, court records said.