Melissa Williams, a lieutenant working for the Arapahoe County Sheriffs Office, claims that she was forced to resign after her colleagues discovered her Onlyfans account. She had been working for the precinct for over eleven years, and in May 2020 decided to post saucy photos of herself under the pseudonym Lexi Bella to spice up her relationship with her husband. Not long after, her account was found by someone at her office and she began receiving written complaints about her extracurricular activities. 

NY Post “The complaint came totally out of the blue, then I was angry and embarrassed because the notice went on to say how five colleagues of mine — all in lower and higher ranks than me — had obtained access to my paid account to access my private content so they could investigate my conduct.”

Williams must have known that it's always a risk to post anything on the internet and that someone would eventually find her titillating photos. Nevertheless, that doesn't seem like a good reason to lose your job.

While it's not typical for a cop who makes a decent salary to have a side job as an Onlyfans model, Williams claims that her account only makes around $4,000 a month. She has been using it as a way to unwind with her husband and did not intend for it to become her primary source of income.

NY Post “A lot of the material my husband and I shared is stuff we’d taken in our private sex life over the years,” explained the mother of two. “I was working up to 60-hour weeks, so mostly my husband ran the page and shared my pictures, and then sometimes we’d have fun dressing me up and taking photos especially to share.” 

“It was a fun way to relax and be creative together after a stressful week in a stressful job.”

She did get a heft severance package of $30,000 for resigning, but it seems like a measly sum when compared to the salary and benefits of being a lieutenant of a police department. Williams claims that she's happy to be done with such a stressful job and that her family can relax knowing she won't suffer the dangers of being an officer. However, being fired, or asked to quit, for having a side hustle, no matter the job, is questionable.