The Lumberton Police Department is still somewhat in a state of flux, with the department’s interim chief recently resigning after just seven months in that position.
Interim Chief Larry Allen handed in his resignation Monday, shortly before a special-called meeting of the Lumberton Board of Aldermen which saw board members convene to executive session within a few minutes. Adam Jones, who is a current Lumberton police officer, was named as the new interim chief in Allen’s stead.
“No reason was given for his resignation,” Ward 3 Alderman Jonathan Griffith said. “We were just presented with a letter that he resigned, and we weren’t given any details.”
Griffith said the board has been informed that there are some police body cameras missing, but no other information is available as the matter is still under investigation.
Allen did not return calls for comment, and Mayor Quincy Rogers said he could not comment on the issue because it is a personnel matter.
Allen had served in the interim position since August, when then-chief Carlus Page was removed as chief and re-classified as a police officer. Page was sworn in as chief about four months before that, when former chief Shane Flynt resigned after a video surfaced of Flynt reportedly smoking marijuana.
Aldermen have been accepting applications for police chief for the last several months, with three individuals having submitted applications for the position: Allen, former Lumberton police officer Daniel Wilczek and Chris Franklin of Columbia.
“At this moment, I don’t know if we’re any closer to picking a permanent chief or not,” Griffith said. “We’re just taking it one day at a time, trying to figure out what’s going on with the police department and why we’re having so many turnovers.”
The matter of hiring a new chief was discussed during an executive session last month, but no action was taken as far as making a hire because board members wanted to take a little more time to review the candidates.
“As far as I’m concerned – and I don’t have a vote – but I’m looking for the perfect person for the job,” Rogers said in a previous story. “Whether he’s from (Lumberton Police Department), whether he’s from the next community over, I’m just looking for the perfect person for Lumberton.”
