East Windsor police are looking into allegations that a former officer at the department posted comments provoking violence on a police department Facebook page.
Doug Humphrey, who voluntarily left the department more than eight years for a law enforcement job in Florida, is accused of posting "For any of my law enforcement friends who may not have seen this [sic] if this (expletive) approaches [sic] you kill him dead" as a comment on a Chicopee Police Department Facebook post, according to baystateexaminer.com.
He was reportedly responding to Chicopee Police Department's Dec. 22 Facebook post about a criminal investigation into Chicopee resident Charles DiRosa's "Put Wings on Pigs" Facebook message referencing what shooter Ismaaiyl Brinsley said before ambushing and killing New York Police Department officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos in their police cruiser in Brooklyn following nationwide uproar over the death of Eric Garner.
Chicopee police had posted that DiRosa would be issued a court summons on a charge of threat to commit a crime and that the department notified surrounding law enforcement agencies as a precaution.
"After the events of the past few days, the PD took this threat very seriously," the Chicopee Police Department posted on Facebook.
East Windsor police also said that they are taking Humphrey's reported response to DiRosa's statement seriously and looking into the facts to determine if a crime has been committed and the department has jurisdiction to take any action.
"Before the East Windsor Police Department takes any official steps or actions [sic] we must ensure that an impartial and comprehensive investigation is completed," East Windsor Police Chief Edward J. DeMarco Jr. said in a statement. "....The East Windsor Police Department will use all of its available resources and legal assistance to assure that this happens in a timely fashion."
DeMarco Jr. stressed that if indeed Humphrey did make those comments, the department has no connection to him or his current place of work and that the comments don't reflect the "the beliefs of the East Windsor Police Department, our culture of fair and equitable public service, our long earned trusted community member status, or thoughts of any individual members of this dedicated public safety agency."
"Everyone should know that we, the East Windsor Police Department, do not tolerate this type of activity or beliefs, in any way," DeMarco Jr. said. "We would like to thank the community for promptly bringing this matter to our attention. We are taking this matter seriously and will work diligently for a successful conclusion."
Humphrey's only remaining connection to East Windsor is that he "may or may not" be receiving a penchant due to his former employment with the police department.
