Leaders in a West Virginia town are disputing a public claim made by their own police department that every member of the agency had been fired, saying instead that the department is the subject of an internal review tied to allegations involving a break-in at its evidence room.
The Barrackville Police Department said in a July 7 Facebook post that town officials had dismissed the entire force.
“Effective immediately, the entire Barrackville Police Department has been relieved of duty by the Mayor and City Council,” the department wrote. “We are sincerely grateful for the support, trust, and encouragement shown to us by the Barrackville community throughout our service. It has been an honor and a privilege to serve and protect this town.”
Former Barrackville Police Chief Zachary Freeburn. (Barrackville Police Department Facebook)
The post followed the resignation of then-Barrackville Police Chief Zachary Freeburn, who stepped down “effective immediately.”
But Barrackville general counsel John Funkhouser told INC News that the department’s statement describing a wholesale firing was “entirely inaccurate.” According to Funkhouser, two officers were put on temporary leave while officials conduct an internal investigation into an alleged break-in at the department’s evidence room.
A close-up view of a Barrackville Police Department shoulder patch worn by officers in the Marion County, West Virginia, agency before town officials relieved the department of duty. (Barrackville Police Department Facebook)
Funkhouser said Freeburn told council member Alex Neville on July 1 that the evidence locker had been cleared out under direction from the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office, with only firearms seized years earlier and $30 in abandoned cash left behind. Freeburn resigned the next day.
Officer David Hunt then reached out to Barrackville Mayor Thomas Straight regarding an “action plan” for the department. Due to an alleged lack of “proper records and other documentation,” Straight placed Hunt and officer Ethan Darden on temporary inactive status to give the town’s council “time to review all pertinent information regarding the operation of the Barrackville Police Department.”
A Barrackville Police Department K-9 vehicle is seen in Barrackville, W.Va. The town’s entire police department was relieved of duty by the mayor and town council. (Barrackville Police Department Facebook)
Straight raised concerns on July 6 that unauthorized individuals could remotely access surveillance cameras at the police department, which included those housed in the evidence room. When several council members entered the evidence room, they found “a list of safe combinations on a desk and used one to open the safe, which turned up nothing.”
One police cruiser was also found unlocked by the council members, along with another one that had an “unsecured rifle” inside. The officers were placed on leave the following day.
Hunt responded by saying he was going to investigate the alleged break-in at the police department and wanted to claim “whistleblower” status, inviting the West Virginia State Police to investigate. After town officials met with the West Virginia State police, the Barrackville Police Department’s clerk resigned.
An undated photo shows a Barrackville police officer and patrol vehicles along Main Street in Barrackville, W.Va. (Barrackville Police Department Facebook)
“The assertion that the entire police staff has been fired in entirely inaccurate. The Mayor and Council engaged in necessary acts of oversight to ensure the accountability of the Barrackville Police Department and confirm that the Department was complying with all rules and regulations under which the department should have been operating. The Town of Barrackville is committed to transparency, accountability and the safety of its residents,” Funkhouser said in a statement.
Hunt’s account to WBOY differs from the town’s version of events, telling the outlet that he discovered the evidence room had been entered by someone else when he got to work on July 7.
After accusing town officials of entering the evidence room, he and another officer, who consist of the entire town’s police force, were fired.
An electronic sign outside the Town of Barrackville announces a town council meeting (Barrackville Police Department Facebook)
In a Facebook post, the Barrackville Town Council announced that the July 7 meeting was canceled due to “a lack of sufficient information regarding items listed under unfinished business.”
In the meantime, Marion County Sheriff Roger Cunningham told WBOY that their agency will handle calls within Barrackville.
INC News has reached out to the Barrackville Police Department for comment.
