That
incident in March – captured on Police Department security cameras – launched
an internal investigation by police, Police Chief Emanuel Gomes said.
On
Wednesday, Police Department security cameras captured Sullivan, on duty and in
uniform at the police station, taking another sum of money, this time from an
undercover police officer, court documents show.
Police
used the undercover police officer, who is not from this area, as part of the
internal investigation “so he would not be known,” Gomes said.
The
weeks-long investigation, which is ongoing, led to the arrest on Wednesday of
Sullivan, a longtime Brockton police officer who once patrolled downtown as the
city’s bike officer.
Sgt.
Timothy R. Stanton, head of the police internal affairs division, filed the
application for criminal complaint against Sullivan in Brockton District Court
on Wednesday. Sullivan was brought into court the same day.
Sullivan,
53, a Brockton native who lives in East Bridgewater, has been placed on a
five-day, unpaid suspension following the incidents, Gomes said. He faces two
counts of larceny of under $250 for one alleged offense in March and a second
on Wednesday.
“This
is never pleasant. Police misconduct is not pleasant, but it will be
investigated and it will not be tolerated,” Gomes said Thursday.
Further
charges against Sullivan may be pending and Plymouth County District Attorney
Tim Cruz’s office is working with Brockton police on the matter, Gomes said.
Sullivan
could not be reached for comment on Thursday. A woman who answered the door of
his East Bridgewater home declined comment.
His
attorney, Michael F. Darche, a former Plymouth County prosecutor and a longtime
friend of Sullivan, said he is optimistic his client will be fully reinstated
to his position at some point.
In the
1990s, Sullivan, as a police officer, and Darche, then an assistant district
attorney, worked together on Brockton cases, Darche said Thursday.
“He’s
a guy who I’ve known personally both as a prosecutor and as a friend,” Darche
said. “He’s dedicated his life to law enforcement and naturally, these charges
are very, very difficult for him to deal with.”
Sullivan,
best known for being one of the city’s first bike-patrol officers, pleaded
innocent during his arraignment in Brockton District Court on Wednesday.
His case was continued to a pretrial hearing on June 15. Sullivan was released on personal recognizance. The conditions of his release was to surrender all firearms, according to Brockton District Court.
When
reached for comment Thursday, Mayor Linda Balzotti read a prepared statement
over the telephone.
“All
the proper civil service hearing and procedures will be followed and at their
conclusion the appropriate actions will be taken,” Balzotti said. “I am not
able to discuss or speculate on what actions will be taken prior to the
procedure commencing.
“I want
residents to know I take these situations very seriously and that my first and
foremost responsibility is to protect the residents and the interests of the
city of Brockton,” Balzotti said.
When
asked to comment on Sullivan’s tenure as a police officer, Balzotti she said
could not.
“I
really don’t want to jeopardize anything,” she said. “I can’t... It’s a
personnel matter. If I say something that jeopardizes the case, it could be
detrimental and I don’t want to do that.”
Sullivan,
a patrolman, began working as for the Brockton Police Department in 1988 and
earned $119,918 in 2011. In recent years, he worked the lobby desk at police
headquarters.