Maine police officer arrested after accusation of lying about missing person: Reports

A Maine police officer has been charged with multiple crimes after he was accused of falsifying and forging evidence related to a missing person case, according to reports.

Washburn Police Sgt. Chandler Cole resigned after his March 29 arrest. He was charged with aggravated forgery, tampering with public records or information, falsifying physical evidence and unsworn falsification, according to the Associated Press.

His arrest followed an investigation by the Aroostook County Sheriff's Office into the disappearance of 39-year-old Erik Foote. Foote, from Washburn, was reported missing Feb. 6 and was last seen walking along a road in Jan. 30. According to reporting from WAGM, the last person known to have interacted with Foote was Cole.

As the Washburn police chief retired in January, the town with a population of just over 1,600 is currently deciding whether to keep a police department.

USA TODAY has reached out to the Aroostook County Sheriff's Office but have not yet heard back.

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Washburn is located in northeast Maine near the Canadian border. It is about 11 miles west of Presque Isle, Maine.

WAGM reported that Cole initially said he had picked up Foote in Washburn and dropped him off at a gas station in Presque Isle, which was later confirmed by security camera footage.

However, WAGM reported the initial report has been changed to say that Cole dropped Foote off at a Presque Isle hospital, which Cole told Foote's father, Allan Foote, in February. When Presque Isle police could not confirm that information, WAGM said Allan Foote accused Cole of lying.

Foote has not yet been located, and another search party was organized over the weekend to look for him.