Vermont Troopers Resign Over Fake Vaccination Card Scheme
Some wild and crazy news breaking out just north of us here in Massachusetts. Vermont state police made it known on Tuesday that three state troopers who have been accused of a fraudulent vaccination card scheme have resigned.
Western Mass News reports three Vermont state troopers after they were accused of being involved in a scheme to create false coronavirus vaccination cards, have resigned.
The three individuals, who have been identified as Shawn Sommers, David Pfindel, and Raymond Witkowski, are suspected of being involved to some degree in the creation of false vaccination cards.
According to a media statement from the Vermont State Police, troopers Sommers and Witkowski both resigned on August 10, a day after supervisors were alerted to the alleged fake card scheme by a coworker. Pfindel resigned on Friday after an ensuing investigation by the Vermont Department of Public Safety.
The media statement went on to say:
The details surrounding this incident, reported to supervisors by other troopers, were immediately reported to federal law enforcement authorities. The state police referred the matter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Burlington.
Director of the Vermont State Police, Col. Matthew T. Birmingham, said in the media statement that he "could not be more upset and disappointed." Pfindel was hired by the Vermont State Police in 2014. Sommers and Witkowski both joined the force in 2016.
By the way, this is not the first time that fraudulent COVID vaccination cards have popped up on law enforcement radar. A woman was charged last month in Hawaii and accused of using a fake vax card to bypass the state's quarantine requirements.
For more on the story, please visit Western Mass News' website here.