A Boston Police deputy superintendent is suing the department and the city over a demotion the officer claimed was motivated by his investigation of alleged detail fraud.

Marcus Eddings, a 29-year-veteran of the force, filed the lawsuit in Suffolk Superior Court Monday.

Eddings had been promoted to Superintendent, overseeing the Paid Detail and Court Units, in 2019. Subsequently, he led an internal investigation into detail pay that he claimed uncovered 639 violations involving 43 officers, according to the filing.

According to Eddings complaint, when the then-Superintendent brought his findings to Commissioner Michael Cox, the BPD leader said that further investigation would “cause another ‘black eye’ for the Department and that Cox did not want to mess up his legacy.”

Eddings said in his filing that he was also told the BPD could not realistically fire a large number of officers accused of fraud.

“Due to pending litigation, we will decline to comment,” department spokesperson Sgt. Det. John Boyle told the Herald.

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Eddings continued to investigate, uncover, and report more fraud, against the wishes of leadership, and was subsequently stripped of several titles and “unlawfully demoted” in January of 2024, the filing stated.

No answer to the complaint from the city or police department has been filed.