Roca also suggests the state attorney general or the FBI should look into his claims against Febo and the department. Youre supposed to act a certain way, talk a certain way. Concepcion alleged that he returned again and again for hours at a time until an HPD supervisor finally interviewed him three weeks later. The investigating officers found that Roca had violated four department policies: failing to comply with an order to take his video down, unbecoming conduct, criticism of the department and social media rules. Many of those officers all but one of whom are supervisors collected tens of thousands of dollars last year in overtime pay. . Subscribe Today, Amherst Police Chief Livingstone stepping down in May, Unions: UMass putting 100 jobs in jeopardy with privatization plan, Murdaughs fall from grace ends in life sentence for murder, Biden leaving room to change his mind on reelection. I talked with two police chiefs in Minnesota about what happened when Tyre Nichols was stopped by Memphis police officers and fatally beaten last month. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. [15] Located 8 miles (13 km) north of Springfield, Holyoke is part of the Springfield Metropolitan Area, one of the two distinct metropolitan areas in Massachusetts." Story about Holyoke police beating a 12 year old Latino boy in 2014 and fallout: "Three Holyoke police officers beat a 12-year . Mr. Roca said he expected to face discipline after posting the video but was invested in calling attention to what he saw as problems within the department. 'Officer shuffle': Some ousted cops find jobs at new departments in Mass. Roca said that as a result, supervisors have given him a bad image that has influenced others in the department. Roca had been with the department since 2015. He was also advised that he is not to respond to his own complaints while off duty., Lastly, Febo responded to Rocas claim that minority officers are not given opportunities for specialized assignments. var currentheadline = document.getElementById("headline").innerText; A newly released independent audit of the Holyoke Police Department found the HPD poses a "substantial risk" to the city it serves. The youths, Reyes report alleged, were Blood gang members who were under surveillance for their possible involvement in a shooting involving a school bus on the previous day. He said the cars possibly armed occupants made furtive movements and refused to show their hands, and that the officers on scene denied making the remarks Concepcion alleged. Valentin, who went on to work as a staffer for U.S. Sens. A 2020 city report of the top 100 salaries in the city shows that, including school staff, 18 out of the top 20 highest paid city employees that year were police officers. tag_id.innerHTML = ''; Garcia said that a sub-group from the city's Police Relations Advisory Committee reviewed several consulting firms' proposals to conduct the audit. I think the common response is, Why bother? she said. Holyoke Officer Rafael Roca, a former Marine hired in 2016, said in the 43-minute video posted on YouTube that Chief Manny Febo is "corrupt" and plays favorites, and he argued that members of minority groups are passed over for plum assignments and that discipline is handed out selectively. He said that Febo and others have stepped in to prevent him from getting jobs with other police departments. When Massachusetts lawmakers passed a sweeping police reform law in late 2020, one of the bills provisions opened up law enforcement misconduct investigations to greater scrutiny under the states public records law. var sellablestring3 = "STAFF FILE PHOTO"; According to Roca, supervisors in the department have lied on the stand. They label you a liar, he said. The mayors office said it expects the report to be completed in the coming days. He was deployed to Bosnia from 2003-2004 where he worked with anti-corruption and security forces. In 2014, the president of the patrol-officer union wrote a scathing letter to the City Council denouncing Councilors Rebecca Lisi and Jossie Valentin for marching in a Black Lives Matter protest where he said some protesters used anti-police rhetoric., Since that moment, it was very evident to me that some members of the Holyoke Police Department were not happy with me and with Rebecca, Valentin told NEPM in an interview from Puerto Rico, where she now lives. 8. In August, the city of Holyoke hired a firm to audit its police department, including its internal affairs processes. They took my gun and my badge and kicked me out of the email system, Roca told Masslive.com on Monday. The man, whose name the department redacted, said Leahy accused him of raising a handgun as he crossed the street in front of Leahys cruiser. Murphy didnt have to answer to anybody. var currentLocation = window.location; Taken from that vehicle was two ballistic vests with two magazines in the pouches, along with some K9 gear, and a first aid bag. At the end of the video, Roca went on to tell viewers to seek accountability from elected officials. Roca said he did speak to both the attorney generals office and FBI at the same time, but that there was no subsequent follow-up from them. var sellablestring4 = "GAZETTE FILE PHOTO"; Not one time did they respond to a call, not one time were they on the radio, he said. It should be known as Corrupt City," he said in the video. March 15, sales Last August, Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia hired the New Hampshire-based consulting firm Municipal Resources, Inc., to audit the city's police department. He added, I want to [assure] the citizens of Holyoke that they can continue to have confidence in the men and women of the Holyoke Police Department and the great work that they do every day.. ", He calls out corrupt officers, including the "corrupt police chief, and he is out to get me" He also talks about the "vast misrepresentation when it comes to minority police officers. That is roughly 75 percent of minority officers with eight years or more in specialized assignments, he said. Concepcion, who alleged that police unjustifiably yanked him out of his car at gunpoint in 2016, said he attempted to file a complaint against the officers that day, but police at the station told him they had no complaint forms on hand. He alleged that he was denied a job with the University of Massachusetts Amherst campus police at the request of his police chief and that when he saved the life of a white state trooper, the state trooper was rewarded over himself. You can try, records from the Northampton Police Department, Amherst Police Department investigated 16 civilian complaints, Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission, Holyoke police officer publicly alleged corruption, some characterized as excessive overtime, online, like the POST Commission now allows on its website, blocked from reviewing the police department's internal report. (AP) A Massachusetts police officer who posted a video online alleging corruption within his department says he has been placed on paid administrative leave after refusing to take it down and will probably lose his job. Within the department, he said he had been shamed. Holyoke Officer Rafael Roca, a former Marine hired in 2016, said in the 43-minute video . HOLYOKE A Holyoke police officer recently released a YouTube video accusing the Holyoke Police Department of corruption. Daily Hampshire Gazette. How do cops view themselves and their work? In 2017, for example, a civilian accused Holyoke police officer Patrick Leahy of putting him through hell for almost a year.. I said Im sorry but, respectfully, I refuse to take it down.. When he declined to do so, Roca said he was suspended with pay for failure to obey a direct order on my day off and for violating their social media policy., It goes to show that theyre dirty and they want to cover up the stuff that they do, Roca told the Gazette. Murphy didnt have to answer to anybody. TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) Tens of thousands of Israelis demonstrated Saturday against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's contentious plan to overhaul the country's legal system, as the governm Holyoke Police Department's 24 hour anonymous "TEXT-A-TIP" Dial CRIMES (533-TIPS or 533-8477). The report, which Roca shared with the Gazette, was completed on July 2. HOLYOKE Last week, the citys acting mayor fired a police officer who earlier this year posted a viral video on social media alleging corruption and racism within the Holyoke Police Department. You hear from those that came before us saying the police would kick you back down to the Flats; you couldnt be seen up above High Street, Maldonado Velez said. All rights reserved (About Us). YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. NEPM also contacted all of the police officers mentioned in this story via email or phone. He wrote that because the boy refused several times to place his hand behind his back so that he could be handcuffed, Officer Romero was forced to place him on the ground.. Roca also claimed in his video that recently, a police officer had his car stolen with guns and equipment inside. He alleged that the car was found in Hartford, but the guns and equipment were missing. HOLYOKE Mayor Joshua Garcia announced this week that the city has hired a firm to conduct an audit of the Holyoke Police Department. used triad trailer for sale. If that doesn't work, move to step 2: literally shoot the messenger //LBtag_id.innerHTML = ''; The city attorney suggested that under the circumstances the city was getting off easy. Skilled in Microsoft Word, Police Procedures, Defensive Tactics, Emergency Management, Law Enforcement, Conflict Resolution and Public Speaking. Febo addresses the allegation that minority officers are not given opportunity for specialized assignments, as Roca said in his video that minorities are underrepresented in specialized positions. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. That transparency has been slow to arrive, however. Daily Hampshire Gazette. The suspended officers are listed below: Devon Bones, Holyoke Police Department Bryan Custadio, Fall River Police Department Leon Davis, Springfield Police Department Ernest Fontaine,. When told of NEPMs findings that only three officers had civilian complaints sustained against them over a decade, Valentin said shes not surprised. Roca had argued that the citys social media policy illegally infringed on his First Amendment rights, and that his statements were true and therefore were not defamatory. Ultimately, police found the weapon in February 2012 while Morse was riding along with officers on duty. var currentheadline = document.getElementById("headline").innerText; var sellablestring4 = "GAZETTE FILE PHOTO"; Roca also took issue with the fact that a Nov. 5 hearing on his case took place at City Hall without him. On March 7, Holyoke police officer Rafael Roca posted a video on YouTube alleging racism and corruption by the Holyoke Police Department. "I'm here to make this video to expose the corruption, and the lies, and the injustice that is taking place within the police department in Holyoke, Massachusetts," he says at the start of the video. At the time, then-Police Chief James Neiswanger said the weapon had fallen out of Harts pickup truck. This story is a production of the New England News Collaborative. Neiswanger said that a tipster found the gun in an alley, and that the mayors presence was a coincidence. Growing up Puerto Rican in the Flats neighborhood of Holyoke one of the citys majority-Hispanic lower wards Maldonado Velez said he heard plenty of stories from those whom that system harmed. He also mentioned that he was fired right before Joshua Garcia was sworn in as Holyokes mayor on Monday. They would just tell me to just stop doing what I was doing, its not going to go nowhere, its only going to cause me more hardships and problems, Concepcion said. He alleged that later, somebody who had been arrested tipped police off to the rifles location in an effort to receive leniency in court. There was no set up.. var currentheadline = document.getElementById("headline").innerText; var photocredit = "'GAZETTE FILE PHOTO' 'Holyoke police officer parks in the train station on Main Street on Wednesday, April 28, 2021. Hed be gone by then.. Roca said he has already appealed that decision to the states Civil Service Commission. If youre in the police department, you have to obey orders.. var photocredit = "'Screenshot from YouTube.' In a legal opinion sent to Murphy, which Roca provided to the Gazette, Assistant City Solicitor Kathleen Degnan said that Rocas public statements were not protected by the First Amendment, and therefore the police chiefs order for him to remove the video was lawful. Roca said that the department is rife with racism. When you are someone who speaks up about injustice and about corrupt police officers, they label you as a liar, they label you as a dirty police officer, they label you as someone who is untrustworthy, he said. The comments are concerning, erroneous, harmful, but most importantly divisive, Capt. Pyle represented the WorcesterTelegram & Gazettein the newspapers 2018 lawsuit against the city of Worcester over its police departments illegal withholding of misconduct records. MASSACHUSETTS-In early March, two police sergeants were suspended without pay for speaking with a reporter about mismanagement, corruption and racism within the Holyoke Police Department, and for providing him with internal documents. var tag_id = document.getElementById('buylinkRocaHolyokeFiring-hg-111721,ph2'); That second entry likely relates to an incident in 2017 when Roca fired his gun at a Leeds resident, Dan Guyette, who led officers on a high-speed chase through Holyoke before crashing into parked cars. He went on to say that he had tried to sue, tried speaking with the supervisors, Ive tried my union, Ive tried it all. Roca said he hoped that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Attorney General, along with the FBI, would open an investigation into the department. Pyle told NEPM that police departments and other public agencies will continue to withhold records or slow-roll their release until lawmakers improve the states public records law, which many have criticized as one of the least transparent in the country. This video posted online by Former Holyoke Police Officer Rafael Roca may well have been lost to history and future litigants contending with the police misconduct in Western MA if it had not been rescued by the Internet Archive (which is currently fighting off a vexatious lawsuit filed by a greedy publishing monopolist lobbying group which wants to burn down the Internet's proverbial 'Library . In the almost 45-minute video, Roca recounted favoritism, covering up lost and stolen weapons and other instances of corruption. Suspected. The five-year Holyoke Police officer who posted the video, Rafael Roca, explained in the beginning, that he wanted to "expose the corruption and the lies and the injustice" he felt was taking place within the department. Daily Hampshire Gazette Contests & Promotions, Daily Hampshire Gazette Evening Top Reads, Daily Hampshire Gazette Weekly Top Stories, Daily Hampshire Gazette Dining & Entertainment, Support the Based on the report, Police Chief David Pratt suspended Roca for five days and recommended that the citys mayor terminate him. Holyoke Police Officer Rafael Roca Fired Over Video Accusing Department Of Corruption And Racism November 23, 2021 | No Comments Last week, Holyoke's acting mayor fired Rafael Roca, a police officer who posted a video to YouTube making allegations of corruption and racism within the Holyoke Police Department, Daily Hampshire Gazette reported. 540K subscribers in the Bad_Cop_No_Donut community. Roca said he had performed consistently in his role as a police officer and engaged in crime fighting when others were allegedly sleeping in their police cruisers and ignoring crime. He went on to say there had been officers he knew of that were allegedly involved in drunk driving incidents, who had assaulted people with their boats who have been labeled as racist and officers who had stolen money. He went on to say there were police officers who allegedly have made an excess of $260,000 a year and no one had questioned the situation. The chief did, however, address several of the allegations Roca made in the video. Office Location: 57 Suffolk St. Suite 200 Holyoke, MA 01040 Call Us Now, he said, one of his sons was on pain medication because of the force Romero used to arrest him. In his internal report on the incident, HPDs internal affairs officer, Manuel Reyes, said police pulled over Concepcion for a traffic violation. Boing Boing is published under a Creative Commons I wasnt looking for them to be on my side, but youd think if somebody was making allegations about their city they may have questions themselves.. Holyoke Police Officer Rafael Roca suspended after posting viral video alleging corruption at the department 'Because of this video I will probably be fired': Holyoke officer alleges. During the mayoral campaign, Garcias opponent, At-large City Councilor Michael Sullivan, responded to the Gazettes reporting by calling for an audit of the police departments handling of state and federal grant programs, calling the use of overtime excessive. Garcia responded to say that he, too, would support an audit. His video, posted Sunday, has been viewed 27,000 times. And often, legal protections and collective bargaining agreements with police unions prevent those boards from interviewing officers, he added. Sgts. "whether the employee has been guilty of substantial misconduct which adversely affects the public interest by impairing the efficiency of public service." School Comm. Yeah, they didnt waste any time. In his video, Roca references alleged abuse of overtime pay. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. HOLYOKE - A Holyoke police officer recently released a YouTube video accusing the Holyoke Police Department of corruption. Holyoke St. Patrick's Committee holds 67th Grand Video / Feb 18, 2023 / 10:41 PM EST The 70th annual Holyoke St. Patrick's Parade is now nearly a month away and at the Log Cabin Saturday . In the departments investigation, police said they pulled him over for running a stop sign, then tried to tow his car after learning his license was suspended and registration revoked. A vehicle was stolen in Granby, Mass., that vehicle was driven by suspects who drove around and broke into parked vehicles in driveways in South Hadley. We reenter the clubhouse, as we go back to the pool table the brother that just received the pot starts to brag about having a brother as a Holyoke police officer and that he gets stuff like pot and can make some money that way., In its investigation, the HPD found the allegations against Monfett not sustained because there was insufficient evidence to either prove or disprove the allegation.. Lorna McMurrey, 27, was filling . Boing Boing uses cookies and analytics trackers, and is supported by advertising, merchandise Read the rules you agree to by using this website in our Terms list of candidates for Holyoke police officer. It was originally published by New England Public Media. As for Roca, he said he doesnt regret posting the video or making the allegations. A former military police officer, Terrill has for many years researched civilian complaints against police officers in cities across the country, including a2016 study that looked at departmentsin eight different cities. Pictured above: thumbnail of the Youtube video posted by Holyoke police officer Rafael Roca. Holyoke Police Department | Holyoke MA Febo said a detectives vehicle was broken into and taken from that vehicle was 2 ballistic vests with 2 magazines in the pouches, along with some K9 gear, and a first aid bag. Some, but not all, of those items were later found in a vehicle stolen from Granby that was recovered in Hartford, according to Febo. Despite the high Puerto Rican population in Holyoke, Roca said there are not enough police officers from the community. One of our detectives who is assigned to a task force had his task force vehicle broken into, he said. Image courtesy by Kate Turner 21. Tagged: Holyoke, Rafael Roca, Holyoke Police Department, Manny Febo, YouTube, Ella White, Pioneer Valley, Italian professors departure would mean end of Italian major and minor programs, Students mobilize against the rise in tuition costs/tuition increase, Holyoke police officer suspended after alleging corruption. Reyes ultimately exonerated Romero. The Holyoke Police Department is working very hard to reduce crime and impact violence in this industrious Western Massachusetts city. Instead of arresting the driver, Monsalve, one of a number of officers who responded, decided to park the drivers car and give him a ride back home. He said: The chief saw your video and hes ordering you to take it down, Roca said. Howie Carr: What's so urgent in Holbrook, Mr. Speaker? program "Holyoke has always been known as the Paper City. Isaac Holyoke, director of communications at CleanSpark, said the shift made it easier for employees to communicate with each other and that employees value "autonomy and flexibility." "People are used to being at home when they can go on business when they need to, and we have kept that culture here in the office," Holyoke said. Ill probably lose my job, but Im good. But that work hasnt fully gotten off the ground yet. When the state Legislature passed its police reform bill, state Senate President Karen E. Spilka, D-Ashland, described the legislation as a necessary first step towards achieving systemic change through law enforcement accountability and transparency.. Roca said the straw that broke the camels back and resulted in him posting the video was a call from a coworker he received the day the video was posted, March 7. In response to a public records request, the HPD has now turned over the 69 investigations it conducted from 2010 through 2019 into civilian complaints. of Of the remaining 34 non-minority officers in this group, 18 are in a specialized assignment. He has since been suspended for refusing to take the video down. In it, he alleged that superior officers falsify overtime pay, have protected each other from punishment for misconduct and have fostered a culture of favoritism and racism when it comes to promotion. He also alleged gross negligence by Febo and his "favorites.". After Customers Paid Large Deposits for Home Projects, Contractor Files for Bankruptcy, How Much Snow Has Fallen in Your Area So Far, The House Where JonBenet Ramsey Was Found Dead Is Listed for Sale at Nearly $7M, FIRST ALERT: Wintry Mix Keeps Falling as Storm Hits New England (Live Radar).