Fire District No. 1 Prudential Committee candidate Troy DeCouto is asking voters to look past the 2014 incident in which he was punished for larceny of gas from the district, and instead consider the good he has done for the district.

“I have a vested interest and heartfelt concern for the people in the department,” DeCouto said.p

In 2014, DeCouto was arrested and charged with larceny in excess of $250 after he was found filling his personal vehicles with fuel from Fire District No. 1. After he petitioned the courts, the felony charge was reduced to a misdemeanor, and the case was continued "without a finding." After a probationary period of six months, which DeCouto served without any additional legal issues, the charges were dropped and wiped from his record, according to court documents.

“I went through the proper chains,” DeCouto said.

According to District No. 1 Attorney Anthony Savastano, the felony charge was reduced only after DeCouto’s attorney met with Savastano and the Prudential Committee and “threw himself at the Prudential Committee’s feet,” asking them “not to agree, but don’t object to… having the charges reduced from a felony to a misdemeanor.”

DeCouto says such a meeting never happened.

After being involved with the Fire District for more than 26 years, DeCouto decided he wanted to give back to the district by running for the Prudential Committee. During his time with the department, DeCouto says he came to be the “go-to guy” in the department when the chief was absent.

“That responsibility didn’t come over night,” he said.

He described his arrest as an “unfortunate set of circumstances” and an “isolated incident.” According to the police report from the incident, he was observed on a surveillance video filling his personal vehicles. However, he described the surrounding circumstances as a “delicate situation.”

“I lost friends over this, I gained some support,” DeCouto said.

According to DeCouto, there were several instances of casual misconduct among other fire district staff where members “borrowed, took things, brought things back.” However, these situations were mitigated “in-house,” DeCouto said, later noting that he feels he was a “selected target” for something that was commonplace at the fire department.

As someone who “isn’t afraid to speak my mind” and “ask the tough questions,” he inadvertently made enemies during his time with the district while trying to implement changes to help streamline the department’s response, DeCouto said. He described the atmosphere as a “good old boys club” that was resistant to change.

DeCouto says he feels that many veteran members think they will have “something to fear” if he makes it onto the Fire District Prudential Committee.

To date, DeCouto has worked as an EMT and a paramedic. Despite receiving vitriol and “unsettling” responses from strangers, as a lifelong emergency responder, DeCouto says he still has more to offer to the district.

“People only remember the bad stuff,” DeCouto said. “A lot of good was done."

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