An inappropriate relationship with a Warren County Prison inmate who later became a confidential informant in drug cases is the alleged reason Warren County’s former chief detective resigned.

Tom Kibbey faces two third-degree felony charges of peace officer-sexual intercourse/contact with a person in custody/detention. Charges were formally filed on Thursday, when a preliminary arraignment was held in Magisterial District Judge Laura Bauer’s chambers. Bail was set at $50,000 unsecured. A preliminary hearing will be June 25.

Kibbey resigned in March after an investigation into a complaint of possible misconduct was brought to the county District Attorney’s office on Jan. 30, according to Rob Greene, county district attorney.

According to the Affidavit of Probable Cause filed by a state Attorney General’s office investigator, an unnamed victim was identified after inappropriate contact between Kibbey and the victim was recovered from a forensic download of the victim’s cell phone.

An Assistant Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations received an investigative referral from the Erie office of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms concerning the informant possibly trading guns for drugs. The Homeland Security officer analyzed the phone data for intelligence purposes and, during the review, allegedly saw photographs of Kibbey, some in police uniform and at least one that was “explicit in nature,” according to the affidavit. Based on the observation, the Homeland Security officer notified his superiors. In March, the Attorney General’s Office investigator drove to the ATF office in Erie and viewed the entire text message thread between the informant and Kibbey lasting from June 13, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2024.

“The messages start out professional and are focused on Victim #1 working with law enforcement in exchange for consideration on criminal charges he/she is facing,” the affidavit states. “The messaging between Kibbey and Victim #1 turns into flirtatious talk with both of them messaging about sex in general and sexual attractions. It appears through the text messaging that they made plans to meet on June 22, 2024, with both of them asking each other where their location is and where GPS is directing them to.”

According to the affidavit, the Attorney General’s office investigator traveled to Warren County on March 12 to meet with the victim at the Warren Police Department. During that meeting, the victim admitted to having intercourse with Kibbey twice, saying they met at public locations in June 2024 while texting until Aug. 31, 2024. The victim was arrested Sept. 1, 2024, and their phone was seized.

A full story will be published in Saturday’s edition of the Times Observer.