27 Facts About Roy McGrath

Roy C McGrath was an American political operative who served as the director of the Maryland Environmental Service from 2016 to 2020, and as the chief of staff to Governor Larry Hogan from June to August 2020.

Roy McGrath was born on August 9,1969, in Greece, to father Howard Roy McGrath, an attorney, and his wife Polyxene.

Roy McGrath is identified as "Roy Carlos McGrath" in his marriage license.

Roy McGrath grew up in Maryland, attending the Leonard Hall Junior Naval Academy and graduating from St Mary's Ryken High School in 1987.

Roy McGrath later attended the University of Maryland, College Park, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in government and politics, and economics in 1993.

Roy McGrath first got involved with politics at 18, becoming a member of the Republican Party and later forming a Young Republicans club in Southern Maryland.

Roy McGrath later worked on Hogan's gubernatorial campaign in 2014, serving as the director of the group "Lawyers for Hogan" and overseeing early voting and Election Day operations.

Roy McGrath served as a member of Governor-elect Larry Hogan's transition team.

Roy McGrath later joined the Hogan administration as a senior advisor and liaison to the Maryland Board of Public Works on January 21,2015.

Roy McGrath left this position on July 1,2015, to become one of Hogan's deputy chiefs of staff.

Roy McGrath received employee incentive payments of $117,932 between September 2017 and September 2019.

In September 2020, former MES deputy Beth Wojton testified that Roy McGrath routinely prevented her and other employees from seeing expenses related to the Environmental Business Leadership Conference, a series of MES events held each year.

Later that month, the committee took the unusual step of authorizing a subpoena for Roy McGrath, who testified before legislators in December 2020.

In May 2021, the Joint Committee on Fair Practices and State Personnel Oversight released a report on its investigation into Roy McGrath, which suggested that Roy McGrath flouted state personnel rules, received questionable reimbursements, and mischaracterized the details of his severance payment.

On October 5,2021, Roy McGrath was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges for wire fraud, misconduct in office, and improper use of state funds.

Roy McGrath lashed out against state prosecutors in a Facebook post later that week, saying that "politically-motivated bullies" were after him and that he was confident "the exculpatory facts will come to light and speak for themselves".

In November 2021, Roy McGrath pleaded not guilty to criminal charges in federal court.

Ricci disputed other emails released by Roy McGrath, calling them a "complete fabrication".

In June 2022, a superseding indictment was issued against Roy McGrath, alleging that Roy McGrath had forged a memorandum from Hogan approving the severance payment.

On October 5,2021, the same day Roy McGrath was indicted on federal charges, he was indicted on state charges in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court for multiple counts of wiretapping and misconduct for allegedly recording conversations with the governor, cabinet secretaries and other officials without their consent.

Roy McGrath was due to stand trial for the state charges in July 2023.

Roy McGrath ignored police trying to arrest him, resulting in a police chase that ended when McGrath was boxed in near a local fast-food restaurant and auto parts store.

Roy McGrath ignored demands to put his hands out the driver's side window and told agents that he had a loaded gun, which he fired at his right temple.

Roy McGrath was taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center, where he died 30 minutes later.

The Washington Post reported that in a document, law enforcement said they believed Roy McGrath shot himself during the traffic stop, but that it was unclear whether the self-inflicted wound or shots from law enforcement killed him.

Roy McGrath married his first wife, Yuliya, in 1997, and was divorced in 2010.

In September 2021, less than two weeks before Roy McGrath was federally indicted, he married Laura Bruner, who was his girlfriend at the time he served as MES director.