Jun 10, 2009 10:45 pm US/Eastern
I-Team: Trooper Gone Fishing Is Suspended
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
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Massachusetts State Trooper Terry Nugent is the captain of his fishing business, Riptide Charters.
WBZ
State police are cracking down on one of its own -- a direct result of an I-Team investigation. Last summer, our I-Team tracked a trooper who was calling in sick, but he wasn't too sick to run a side business or too sick to fish.
Terry Nugent threatened to call police when the I-Team showed up at his Cape Cod home.
"Kathy (Curran), I asked you very nicely to please leave my property," he said.
On the water he's the captain of the Riptide, but on land he wears the uniform of a trooper for Massachusetts State police.
I-TEAM REPORT LEADS TO POLICE INVESTIGATION
The I-Team's investigation last summer caught
Trooper Nugent calling in sick to run his side business --
Riptide Charters and calling in sick to fish.
"I think anyone who lies, cheats or steals should be fired," said Barbara Anderson with Citizens for Limited Taxation.
Over the past year internal affairs has been looking into the I-Team's allegations.
We logged onto the fishing chatroom Surftalk where Trooper Nugent goes by the name Riptide and compared his fishing adventures on the waters off the Cape to his payroll records.
In one blog he says, "Take a day off -- call in sick because the fishing season is too short."
Our investigation found Nugent taking his own advice. He used 30 sick days in a year and a half, and last fishing season 8 out of the 11 days he called in sick -- he was well enough to cast a line.
The discovery sparked an internal investigation by State police. Sources say Nugent was suspended for 30 days without pay and now, just like any other trooper, he has to get permission from the department to run a business on the side.
"Can we ask you some questions?" Curran asked Nugent.
"No, you may not, you can speak with public relations," Nugent said.
"You don't want to answer any questions. You said the allegations weren't true?" Curran asked.
"Kathy, please leave my property. The next time you'll deal with Bourne PD if you don't leave my property," Nugent said.
We found case after case where Nugent didn't work his shift at the Bourne barracks but wasn't too sick to fish. From June 15, when he called in sick but was well enough to run a charter that turned out to be a "killer 1/2 day bass trip," to the beginning of July when Nugent "made the call" for a 14 hour fishing day and made sick calls two days in a row.
The I-Team received this statement from State police saying, "State police conducted a thorough internal investigation, and Trooper Nugent was disciplined appropriately. The State police do not tolerate abuse of sick leave and take appropriate action when necessary."
WAS TROOPER'S SUSPENSION ENOUGH?
Anderson says the citizens of the state who pay this trooper's salary deserve more.
"Then you ask is it justice if someone lies to their employer and cheats to their employer and just gets a suspension," Andersons aid. "When policemen do it it's opposite of what policemen are supposed to be about."
Nugent was able to keep his job but was hit with a suspension. Within the past year there have been allegations of sick leave abuse against five other sworn members of the State police. Right now those cases are still under review.
Nugent can't run any fishing charters until he gets clearance from the department to have a second job.
A spokesperson for the State police also tells us for an agency of 2,300 sworn members the rate of sick leave abuse is extremely low.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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