2 Millbury PD officers on paid leave after removing gun from armory

MILLBURY, Mass. — Two Millbury police officers are on paid leave after a gun was temporarily missing from the station’s armory.

According to a State Police report, the firearm had been turned in as part of a guns for goods program in December in partnership with the Worcester Police Department.

Those guns had been stored in a locked armory where other firearms and evidence is sometimes kept. Police officials said they were under the impression that only two officers had access to that area.

>>READ MORE: Full State Police report on investigation

When the Millbury police officer in charge of the program was preparing to bring the guns to the Worcester Police Department, it was noticed that one of the guns was missing.

During an investigation, the officers responsible for taking the gun said they had planned to test fire it, but that they had not gone through with the plan and the gun was placed in one of the officers’ lockers.

According to one witness, one of the suspended officers said they "thought it was a cool gun, that it would be fun to test fire and took it out of the armory."

One of those officers had previously stored his weapons in that armory and had a key, which department officials said they believed had been returned.

Police Chief Donald Desorcy wouldn't talk about the allegations, only saying it's now an internal police investigation and the two officers remain on leave pending the outcome.

“I just want to assure the residents of our community that we are doing what's best for the community and for the employees that work here.  I think we're setting some high standards and we're going to live by those standards,” he said.

The gun is now being held as evidence while an investigation into the incident continues. Desorcy said he expects that investigation to be completed by the end of the month.

Cox Media Group