A police officer in the Middletown Police Department has pleaded guilty to falsifying a report after getting into an accident with his police cruiser, Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced.
On July 17, Thomas E. Foster, 33, of Keyport, entered a guilty plea before state Superior Court Judge Ellen Torregrossa-O’Connor to one count of fourth degree falsifying records, according to a press release from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office.
Foster acknowledged he falsified a report detailing an accident with his patrol car on July 3, 2019. By pleading guilty, Foster will face probation, but will be permitted to apply for the Pre-Trial Intervention program, according to the press release.
His plea also calls for forfeiture of his position as an officer with the Middletown Police Department and permanently forfeiting public office in New Jersey, according to the press release. Foster has been suspended without pay from his job since being charged in June.
In July 2019, Middletown police began an investigation into Foster’s actions. Because a preliminary investigation revealed his actions may have been criminal, the Middletown Police Department referred the matter to the prosecutor’s office, 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 that job, Foster got into an
accident with his patrol car.
Foster filed a Police Vehicle Accident and Damage Report with his department, alleging that while he was reversing his vehicle out of a parking spot, he “contacted a telephone pole,” which was near his home and only a few blocks away from the road work.
It was later discovered Foster was involved in a motor vehicle accident during which he backed the police cruiser into a parked pickup truck on Cedar Avenue, causing damage to both vehicles, according to the press release.
Foster is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 21. In New Jersey, first-time offenders convicted of a fourth degree offense are entitled to a presumption of a probationary sentence and not jail time, however, every case is evaluated based on its unique facts and circumstances, according to the press release.