HAMTRAMCK, Mich. – The Investigators at Local 4 has obtained a report conducted by an outside law firm investigating allegations against three suspended Hamtramck employees.
The city of Hamtramck retained the Miller Johnson law firm to conduct an investigation into allegations against Hamtramck police Chief Jamiel Altaheri, Officer David Adamczyk, and City Manager Max Garbarino.
The report found evidence that Altaheri allegedly drove drunk in a police car to and from a strip club, destroyed evidence, and pressured officers to write a fake police report to help in a custody dispute.
The law firm is expected to officially announce its findings at the Aug. 26, 2025, Hamtramck city council meeting.
What to know about the investigation report
- The city of Hamtramck retained the Miller Johnson law firm in June 2025 to conduct an independent investigation.
- The Miller Johnson law firm released the 59-page investigation report on Aug. 24, 2025.
- The law firm investigated the following individuals:
- Hamtramck police chief Jamiel Altaheri
- Hamtramck police officer David Adamczyk
- Hamtramck city manager Max Garbarino
- The report says the city has enough evidence and reason to terminate all three employees.
According to the report, the firm obtained more than 670,000 documents, conducted around 40 witness interviews, reviewed audio and video recordings, and looked at forensic data from hard drives, cell phones, and the city’s network server.
The 59-page report details the firm’s investigative findings and conclusions with a focus on what the firm found to be most relevant. The report says the city has enough evidence and reason to terminate all three employees.
Allegations against police chief Jamiel Altaheri
What to know about Hamtramck police chief Jamiel Altaheri:
- Altaheri was sworn in as police chief on May 12, 2024.
- Altaheri was suspended on May 21, 2025.
The investigation uncovered multiple incidents of Altaheri allegedly driving intoxicated in his city-issued truck. It details a time last September when he allegedly drove to and from a strip club with other officers.
Evidence also supported the allegations that the chief handed a loaded gun to a civilian volunteer and told her to put it to someone’s head.
The investigation also found at least five 911 calls to Altaheri’s home in the span of five months. In one of the calls, officers responded to a 911-hang up call with yelling in the background. The investigation found Altaheri then allegedly pressured the responding officers to lie on a police report to help him in a custody dispute.
According to the report, Althaheri allegedly recovered a stolen car for a friend without following proper protocol. He also allegedly directed an evidence technician to wipe his phone minutes after he was placed on leave.
According to the report, evidence supports allegations that Altaheri:
- Destroyed evidence and obstructed the investigation.
- Drove his city-issued vehicle after consuming alcohol.
- Reduced another officer’s discipline in exchange for the destruction of evidence.
- Handed a loaded gun to a civilian and told her to put it to someone’s head.
- Pressured officers to help him in a custody dispute.
- Violated policies and procedures regarding stolen property.
- Violated other policies and procedures.
According to the report, the investigation did not “confirm or dispel the allegation that Altaheri committed domestic violence and did not substantiate the allegation that he misused his authority as police chief to cover up acts of domestic violence.”
Investigators also did not find evidence that Altaheri improperly solicited money from a local towing company operator.
Investigators did confirm that at least two city ID cards were created for Mark Zarkin, “for some unknown reason,” but that did not appear to have violated any existing policies or procedures.
Did Altaheri hand a loaded gun to a civilian?
The evidence supports the allegation that Altaheri handed a loaded gun to a civilian volunteer and told her to point the firearm at a shop owner’s head to get some sunglasses, according to the report.
The investigation report states that it happened in Altaheri’s office on April 30, 2025, and was recorded by Adamczyk. Altaheri, Adamaczyk, and another officer were allegedly in the room when the civilian volunteer walked in.
Here is a portion of the transcript from the audio recording as written in the investigation report:
Altaheri: “Point this at his f------ head and tell him, ‘Gimme the frame.’”
Volunteer: “Huh?”
Altaheri: “Go put it in his head and tell him, ‘Gimme the frame.’ I’m serious.”
Volunteer: “Okay.”
Altaheri: “Put it right here and tell him.”
Volunteer: [Makes uncomfortable noise.]
Altaheri: “Go ahead. Get the f------ glasses and come back. Alright? Go put it to his head. Let me know how it goes.”
Local 4 obtained the audio of this conversation:
The officer said that the volunteer took the gun by pinching it with her index fingers and thumbs and held it with the barrel facing down. When he saw her holding the gun, he asked Altaheri if it was loaded and he allegedly confirmed it was. The officer took the gun from the volunteer and placed it in a drawer behind Altaheri’s chair.
Altaheri allegedly said in an interview with investigators that it was a preplanned joke that had been suggested by Adamczyk, and that the gun was not loaded. The civilian volunteer was not interviewed. According to the report, she released a public statement that also characterized it as a “joke.”
“Based on the evidence, Altaheri’s account was not credible. Even assuming that Altaheri was ‘joking’ about the volunteer committing armed robbery (and we accept his contention that he was), handing a City-issued police firearm to an untrained civilian volunteer in a crowded room is reckless and a violation of his job duties,” the report states.
Did Altaheri use his position to help him with a custody dispute?
According to the report, the evidence supports the allegation that “Altaheri pressured officers to conduct an improper investigation and write a false or misleading police report that would portray her unfavorably and assist Altaheri in obtaining custody of their son.”
Altaheri was living at a house in Hamtramck with the mother of his child and their 2-year-old son. According to the report, Hamtramck police officers responded to at least five 911 calls to the house. Some of those calls involved disputes between Altaheri and his partner.
On Sept. 19, 2024, Hamtramck police officers responded to a 911 hang-up call at Altaheri’s house. The report alleges that Altaheri and the mother of his child can be heard arguing in the background. At some point after the 911 hang-up call, Altaheri allegedly left the house -- he returned soon after the officers arrived.
Altaheri allegedly told the officers that he thought she was on pills and wanted the officers to investigate. “Altaheri also mentioned that he and the woman were having a custody dispute over their son and suggested to the officers that their investigation of her for pills could help him in that dispute.”
According to the report, none of the officers found any evidence that she was on pills. Altaheri allegedly told the officers to write a police report in a way to leave it as vague as possible. The police report according to Miller Johnson, “briefly described the officers’ interactions with the woman and stated that the officer ‘observed her eyes to be glossy, bloodshot, and . . . not react to light.’ The report also omitted any mention of Altaheri being at the scene or present in the house during the events.”
Did Altaheri drive recklessly to and from a strip club after drinking alcohol?
The report alleges that on Sept. 19, 2024, after an officer-appreciation party, Altaheri and some other officers decided to go to a strip club in Detroit.
Altaheri allegedly had been drinking at the officer-appreciation party and drove his city-issued truck with an officer in the back and another officer in the front passenger seat. A sergeant, who had not attended the party, drove in a separate car with another officer.
“As Altaheri drove to the Coliseum, he started swerving across lanes. He also began running red lights, activating his police lights on his city-issued truck to do so. Altaheri ran at least three or four red lights during the trip to the strip club,” the report states.
One of the officers in the car behind Altaheri recorded videos of his driving. In November, Altaheri allegedly learned from another officer that there was video of his driving that night. According to the report, he allegedly confronted the officer with the video and demanded that he delete it.
The told Altaheri that the videos would be deleted, but did not delete them. In January 2025, the officer was investigated for timecard fraud and threatened to release the videos.
Altaheri allegedly convened the officer’s disciplinary hearing on Jan. 19, 2025. It was expected that the officer would resign instead of being terminated. Altaheri agreed to a 30-day suspension for the officer instead of a resignation or termination.
Allegations against officer David Adamczyk
What to know about David Adamczyk:
- David Adamczyk previously worked as a Hamtramck police officer from 1998 to 2002. He left the department “following an incident involving the use of force against a detainee” and became a private investigator.
- He was rehired at the Hamtramck Police Department in the summer of 2024.
- Hamtramck police officer David Adamczyk was placed on paid administrative leave on May 21, 2025.
The report found evidence that Adamczyk used recordings of the chief and officers for personal gain, attempted to rig an examination in his favor, participated in the recovery of a stolen car and lied about overtime.
“Many other officers kept their distance from Adamczyk and did not trust him, though, either because of Adamczyk’s reputation from his previous stint with HPD or because of what those officers observed after Adamczyk was rehired,” the report stated.
According to the report, evidence supports allegations that Adamczyk:
- Recorded other officers.
- Attempted to manipulate the sergeant’s examination and then leaking other allegations to pressure Altaheri.
- Violated policies and procedures regarding stolen property.
- Committed overtime abuse.
According to the report, Adamczyk created recordings of conversations “as a way to gain leverage over Altaheri and other officers.” This violated HPD’s rules and regulations.
The investigation also found evidence to support allegations that Adamczyk submitted overtime for hours not actually worked or mischaracterized the nature of his overtime.
Allegations against city manager Max Garbarino
What to know about city manager Max Garbarino:
- Garbarino joined the Hamtramck Police Department as an officer in 2001, his time briefly overlapping with Adamczyk.
- Garbarino was the Hamtramck police chief from 2011 until March 2015 after an internal investigation. His employment ended with a signed separation agreement between Garbarino and the city.
- Garbarino worked for Adamczyk’s private investigation firm for less than a year while building his own business, American Court Services.
- In 2019, the city hired him as the director of community safety and services. He later became the acting city manager and then the city manager.
- Garbarino was placed on administrative leave on May 27, 2025.
According to the report, the law firm’s investigation did not substantiate the initial allegations against Garbarino. Instead, it “identified that Garbarino exercised significant poor judgment in his role as city manager . . .”
The report also states that Garbarino should have suspended Altaheri and Adamczyk earlier, especially given the seriousness of the allegations against them.
“Garbarino suggested to Miller Johnson that he did not have enough evidence to act, but given his responsibilities as city manager, it seems more likely he failed to act earlier for personal reasons, namely out of fear that intervening might jeopardize his own job.”
Attorney for Jamiel Atlaheri issues statement
“I have become aware of the confidential report released today regarding the recent internal investigation regarding the City of Hamtramck and the Hamtramck Police Department.
While I strongly dispute many of the conclusions drawn within it, I recognize that this has been a difficult time for our city and our police department. As Police Chief, I have always worked to build stronger ties between our officers and the community we serve. Under my leadership, we have expanded community outreach, modernized operations of the department, and made important strides in public safety. It is unfortunate that these positive contributions are absent from the report.
I also understand the seriousness of the concerns raised. I am committed to working with the Mayor, City Council, and the City’s legal team to address those concerns in a way that strengthens our department and the city we serve with pride and honor. I believe that accountability and fairness must go hand in hand. Out of respect for the process, I will not comment further on the details of the investigation at this time as to allow the legal process to fully work for all involved.
My focus remains on serving the people of Hamtramck with integrity, ensuring stability within the department and restoring the trust that is vital to effective policing. I ask the public to withhold judgment until all facts are fairly considered, and due process is completed.”
Civil Rights Attorney Amir Makled Client Hamtramck police Chief Jamiel Altaheri