PROVIDENCE, R.I. � A 36-year veteran Providence police officer is accused of stealing jewelry from the Police Department�s evidence room.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. � A 36-year veteran Providence police officer is accused of stealing jewelry from the Police Department�s evidence room.

Patrolman Michael McCarthy, who has been assigned to the property room for several years, was charged by the Providence police Thursday with fraudulent conversion, a felony.

McCarthy was arraigned at District Court, where he entered no plea, and released on $5,000 personal recognizance.�He is also suspended without pay from the department.

�He violated the public�s trust,� said Public Safety Commissioner Steven M. Pare. �This officer was assigned to a very sensitive function � and we�re not going to tolerate that behavior.�

The discovery of the theft � and McCarthy�s access to the evidence and property room � has launched an audit of the numerous items held at the department, some going back many years.

The commissioner and the police chief said they don�t believe any current criminal cases are affected. However, only an extensive audit can tell. McCarthy didn�t have access to drugs seized by the department, but he did have access to jewelry, cash, firearms and other items.

The internal affairs investigation is ongoing and more charges are expected, Pare said.

The value of the missing jewelry, which had been recovered from a theft, wasn�t immediately known. The piece had been sitting in a secured cabinet for a long time as the police sought its owner, the police chief said. They found the rightful owner � and then realized the piece was gone.

That launched the investigation a week and a half ago. The sergeant in charge of the property and evidence room alerted a supervisor, launching an audit and investigation by the police department�s Office of Professional Responsibility.

McCarthy was one of two people with access to that secured area, Pare said, which holds jewelry and cash.�The investigators determined that McCarthy was responsible for the missing jewelry.

Providence police obtained a search warrant Wednesday for McCarthy�s home in Warwick; the commissioner declined comment on anything seized during the search.

The investigation will prompt changes in how property is released from the department, said Chief Hugh T. Clements. In the past, just one officer was needed to sign off on releasing property. Now, he said, he�d like to see two officers and a supervisor sign off before any property leaves police custody.

McCarthy�s arrest shocked those who know him at the Police Department, including its chief. �This was McCarthy�s first and only offense in his long career, Clements said.

�Why do people risk their livelihood, their career, their pension, their reputation? I don�t know,� Clements said

This story was published at 4:22 and last updated at 6:05 p.m.