Fall River Police Chief Fires Officer Who Fabricated Report

FALL RIVER — Fall River's Interim Police Chief Paul Gauvin announced on Thursday that police officer Thomas Roberts has been fired effective Jan. 26 for "egregious violations" of the department's rules.

Roberts and another officer had previously fabricated police use-of-force reports to protect former officer Michael Pessoa.

Pessoa is being criminally charged for police brutality and was fired earlier this month.

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Roberts was given immunity from criminal prosecution for the false reports in order to testify.

In a statement, Gauvin noted that the decision to terminate Roberts was based on findings from a city-appointed hearing officer, although he did not specify the violations that resulted in Roberts being fired.

"The hearing officer found substantial evidence that Mr. Roberts engaged in egregious violations of police department rules and regulations related to untruthfulness and conduct unbecoming," Gauvin wrote in the three-sentence statement.

He added that his termination is "warranted."

Officer Shawn Aguir is the other department member who submitted false police reports in Pessoa's case.

It is unclear if any action will be taken against Aguir.

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See How Much This Fall River Intersection Has Changed in a Decade

Well this is surely a blast from the past. While exploring Google Maps' street view feature recently, I came across an old still from 2012 mixed in with the more recent ones. It showed an almost decade-old look at Fall River's New Harbour Mall, which is now dead and has been replaced by the stores at the SouthCoast Marketplace. The more I looked around the intersection on William Canning Boulevard, the more I began to see remnants of the past, some that may now be long-forgotten for some. This Fall River intersection has changed so much in the past near-decade, but if you're needing a little look in the rearview to see how far it's come, check out some of the following stills.

Filed Under: Fall River Interim Police Chief, Fall River Police, michael pessoa, Paul Gauvin, Shawn Aguir, Thomas Roberts

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