ANDOVER, MASS. (WHDH) - An Andover Fire Rescue lieutenant has been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation into an altercation involving a town resident that was recorded and shared on social media, officials said.
Officials were notified on Wednesday of a video taken by an Andover resident that had been circulating on Twitter showing a man driving a black SUV in a private driveway as the resident questioned why he was following her while she was getting her mail, Town Manager Andrew P. Flanagan and Fire Rescue Chief Michael Mansfield said in a joint news release.
In the video, the man, later identified by town officials as an off-duty fire lieutenant, could be heard saying that he was concerned someone might be stealing from the residence.
That person was 19-year-old Gabby Batista who feels she was accused because of the color of her skin.
“I feel like if it wasn’t for the color of my skin, he wouldn’t have stopped or question anything,” she said. “If it was another caucasian girl from Andover he wouldn’t have questioned anything.”
The incident occurred when Batista and a friend stopped at her home to check the mail. That act caught the attention of the lieutenant who parked outside the home in his personal car.
The two young women then drove away only to be followed.
“We pull over I get out and I said, ‘Sir can I help you?’ He told me said, ‘You just stole mail from that house.’ And I said, ‘No I didn’t. I live there.’ ‘I don’t know that for sure. I got pics of the plates and everything,” Batista said of her encounter with the lieutenant. “He’s like, ‘I am gonna go back to the residence and make sure.”
So, he followed the women back to the home and Batista’s sister came out to confirm she lived at the residence.
“My sister is like, ‘She lives here. Why would you think it is okay to tell her she’s stealing mail?’ He’s like, ‘I just want to be a good citizen.”
The lieutenant, whose name has not been released based on the advice of labor counsel, is out of work and on indefinite paid administrative leave.
“This is an extremely concerning situation, one that demands a full accounting of the facts,” Flanagan said.
Andover has since retained the services of an independent investigator to look into the facts and conduct a holistic review due to the sensitive nature of the incident.
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