Amarillo Assistant Chief Retires Amid Hit‑and‑Run Allegations

It seems there's never a dull moment in Amarillo, and when it involves the police department, we all seem to get overly interested in what's going on. This particular incident has definitely grabbed our attention.

Now, it seems to have at least some kind of resolution. The question is, will this be the end of it, or is there more to come?

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Amarillo Police Department Under Fire

Back in February, the department saw its police chief, Martin Birkenfeld, retire. It wasn't a natural retirement, but more of a forced one after he wrote a letter in support of a convicted child predator. The community was up in arms about the letter, and the department essentially forced retirement upon him.

Now, we have yet another retirement within the department, and this one also feels like a forced one as a response to an incident involving him.

Read More: Are Amarillo Police Tracking Your Every Move? No, That's Not The Case

Assistant Police Chief Kenneth Funtek Retires

Effective August 11, Kenneth Funtek will turn in his badge and retire. Funtek spent 33 years with the Amarillo Police Department and served in various roles before ascending to Assistant Police Chief.

However, this retirement doesn't come without a lot of questions. Was Funtek truly on the verge of retiring? Or did this have something to do with a legal issue looming over him?

Funtek Accused of Hit‑and‑Run

On June 19, a pickup ran into the back of a Hyundai Tucson in the Macaroni Joe's parking lot. The driver of the pickup decided not to leave a note and left the parking lot without stopping. A bystander wrote down the license plate and reported it to police.

The license plate number tracked back to Funtek. An officer spoke with the owner of the Hyundai, as well as two other witnesses, and all three of them stated Funtek appeared to be intoxicated when he backed into the car.

Potter County Attorney Looking Into Charges

In light of the incident, the Potter County attorney is debating whether or not to charge Funtek with DWI. The issue with it is that the evidence in the case would be circumstantial, as no one contacted Funtek the evening of the incident.

Witnesses stated they saw Funtek doing things such as driving in the center of two lanes after leaving, cutting off a car, and nearly causing an accident. Cpl. Johnny Bermea added the DWI language to his report as requested. Then, a day later, it was written in the report that there was no way to prove DWI in the case, and that portion of it would be closed.

Stay tuned, this could get bumpy and interesting.