PLYMOUTH, Mass. — A Massachusetts State Trooper pleaded not guilty in Plymouth District Court on Monday following his arrest for an alleged high-tech surveillance campaign against his estranged wife.
Michael G. Gagnon Jr., 36, is charged with unlawful wiretapping and violating an abuse prevention order through what investigators describe as a pattern of “coercive control” and digital surveillance.
Gagnon’s court appointed lawyer disputed the allegations during the hearing, arguing there’s no proof Gagnon engaged in wiretapping.
The investigation began in March 2026 when Gagnon’s estranged wife reported a drone hovering over her home while her brother was assisting her children off a school bus.
A specialized State Police Cybercrimes unit then conducted a sweep of her home.
During that sweep, a State Police K9 trained to detect electronic devices helped investigators locate two Ring cameras that were warm to the touch and appeared to have been accessed very recently.
Although the victim believed these cameras were deactivated, police discovered that Gagnon had maintained control of an Amazon family account and had upgraded the camera subscription plan.
This access allowed him to program specific recording schedules and receive motion alerts on his phone without the victim’s knowledge, according to court documents.
Evidence gathered by Plympton Police showed that the heaviest periods of camera access directly correlated with significant dates in ongoing legal battles Trooper Gagnon is involved in.
On several occasions, Gagnon reportedly used information gathered from secret recordings—including details of private conversations between the estranged wife and her father—to file motions in court or influence domestic proceedings.
“If there were days that they were in probate court or were otherwise coming before the court, there was a number of activities on this defendant’s specific profile accessing the cameras at her home,” Essex County Prosecutor Alyssa Fournier told the Judge.
A Plympton Police Detective stated in the affidavit that Gagnon demonstrated a level of knowledge about the victim’s movements and private life that would have been impossible without frequent electronic monitoring.
Gagnon was already on administrative leave from State Police following a November 2025 arreston for domestic assault and battery on a child and witness intimidation.
Gagnon’s bail was revoked on his November charges, and he was taken into custody following the hearing.
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