@new_england_unfiltered: Former Methuen Police Chief Joseph Solomon pleaded guilty Friday to all 17 charges against him. And this wasn’t some paperwork oopsie. The charges included perjury, forgery, procurement fraud, civil-service violations and obtaining unwarranted privileges. Eleven were felonies. Prosecutors said Solomon used his authority as chief to hire six part-time intermittent officers and then unlawfully move them into full-time positions, bypassing Massachusetts civil-service requirements. Then there’s former officer Sean Fountain. Investigators said Fountain falsely claimed he’d graduated from a police academy and produced a forged academy certificate. The Attorney General alleged Solomon knew the certificate was fake but treated it as legitimate anyway. Solomon later signed annual civil-service reports, under the pains and penalties of perjury, identifying Fountain as a civil-service officer. Sir. There is cutting a corner, and then there is apparently grabbing the corner, stuffing it into a shredder and signing paperwork saying the corner never existed. Between 2016 and 2020, Methuen paid the intermittent officers more than $1.1 million. Solomon was sentenced to 2½ years in the House of Correction, with 30 days to serve and the remainder suspended for three years. He also loses his city pension, firearm license and private-investigator license. Methuen says losing that pension could reduce its unfunded pension liability by approximately $3.7 million over 20 years, and the city is exploring whether it can recover roughly $1 million already paid to Solomon since his retirement. So yes. The former police chief responsible for enforcing the rules has now pleaded guilty to 17 counts involving how he ran the police department. Accountability took the scenic route, but apparently it finally found Methuen. #massachusetts #methuenma #policeaccountability #publiccorruption #newenglandnews

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Saturday 19 September 2026 02:08:51 GMT