Washington DC employee caught having sex at work, filmed on work phone

The Public Service Commission, an otherwise sleepy agency that regulates Washington’s gas and electric utilities, rarely makes headlines. But for the past few months, the PSC has been hiding a sexy secret. A former PSC chief was caught having sex with a co-worker on the job and filming the incident on his work phone, the city’s Ethics and Government Accountability Council discovered in May.

Udeozo Ogbueuntil recently head of the agency’s Office of Compliance and Enforcement, admitted to the risky behavior in a settlement agreement with BEGA released May 2. He agreed to pay a $10,000 fine in lieu of pursuing a full hearing in the case, easily one of the stiffest penalties imposed by the ethics agency in recent years. (The only former Ward 2 councilman Jack Evans (He managed to get a higher total, earning a combined $55,000 in fines from his various scandals.)

Kellie DidiguPSC spokesperson, told Loose Lips via email that Ogbue no longer works for the agency, as of May 27. She declined to comment when asked by LL whether Ogbue had been fired or resigned, and he could not be reached for comment.

Ogbue pictured during a safety training with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. Photo courtesy of PSC.

According to the BEGA agreement, the PSC became aware of all this when Ogbue turned in his work phone to the agency’s IT department in exchange for a new one. The commission found “40 sexually explicit images” on the phone and in its cloud storage, including “images and videos of Ogbue performing sexual acts with one of his PSC colleagues.”

“(Ogbue) was unable to explain how the images arrived on his work cell phone, but eventually acknowledged that the work cell phone, images and videos belonged to him,” the agreement said.

The agreement adds that “the video and several of the images are dated weekdays at different times of day.” Not exactly what taxpayers were likely hoping for from Ogbue while he was drawing his annual salary of nearly $165,000.

He agreed to pay an initial lump sum of $4,000 by June 3 and a $300 deduction from his biweekly paycheck until the remaining $6,000 is paid. But because he no longer works for the PSC, Ugbue must pay the remaining balance in full by May 1, 2025, according to the agreement.

The agreement makes no mention of the fate of the colleague involved with Ogbue, and there does not appear to be any other BEGA case pending against anyone else at PSC over this matter. (Although LL imagines they are also guilty of violating the section of the city’s personnel manual prohibiting the use of “government time or resources for purposes other than official business,” also cited in Ogbue’s agreement.)

According to the BEGA agreement, Ogbue was a senior PSC executive and had worked for the agency for 17 years. Commission documents suggest he was responsible for managing a $400,000 federal grant this year, among other duties. Ogbue even traveled to Tanzania on behalf of the agency to work on natural gas projects, earning praise from the industry for his work.

There is no indication in the BEGA settlement that Ogbue’s mistress was a subordinate, although LL finds it remarkable that city employees continue to be caught using their work phones to send and receive sexy photos, especially employees in positions of authority.

Mayor Muriel Bowser has taken prudent steps to update the city’s policies regarding inter-office relationships in the wake of Jean Falcicchio Sexual harassment scandal. But none of that will matter if people in leadership positions in the District government can’t keep quiet while they’re on the job.