MIDDLETOWN – An officer in the Middletown Police Department has been charged with falsifying a report after getting into an accident with his police cruiser, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced on June 17.
According to a press release, Thomas E. Foster, 33, of Keyport, is charged with fourth degree falsifying records. He is currently suspended from his job without pay. A first appearance in court for Foster had not been scheduled as of June 17.
In July 2019, Middletown police began an investigation into Foster’s alleged actions. Because a preliminary investigation revealed his actions may have been criminal, the police department contacted the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office in accordance with Attorney General guidelines, according to the press release.
An investigation revealed that on July 3, 2019, Foster was the assigned officer to a road repair project on Cedar Avenue in Middletown. While working the job, Foster got into an accident with his patrol car.
Foster filed a Police Vehicle Accident and Damage Report with the Middletown Police Department, alleging that while he was reversing his vehicle out of a parking spot, he “contacted a telephone pole,” which was located near Foster’s home and only a few blocks away from the road repair project to which he had been assigned.
The prosecutor said it was later discovered Foster was involved in a motor vehicle accident where he backed the police cruiser into a parked pickup truck on Cedar Avenue, causing damage to both vehicles.
In the press release from the prosecutor’s office, Middletown Police Chief R. Craig Weber said he strongly condemned the officer’s alleged actions.
Gramiccioni said Foster’s “attempt to deceive his department by filing a false report violated the special trust afforded to him by his fellow officers and the public he serves.”
If convicted of falsifying records, Foster faces up to 18 months in state prison, according to the prosecutor’s office.