Sandhills_Sentinel

Vass is looking for a new police chief. Former Police Chief Tim Blakeley was formally terminated on Tuesday after a majority of the town council voted for his firing.

“In looking at the direction of the town, we wanted to move in a way we felt it would be best for the town,” said Vass Mayor Eddie Callahan Thursday in a phone interview with Sandhills Sentinel.

Additionally, another patrol officer resigned to take a job with the Lee County Sherriff’s Department. He is from Sanford and wanted to be closer to home. “He was a good officer, and we will miss him,” said Callahan.

The Moore County Sheriff’s Office will be providing support to the town until replacement officers are found.

Callahan expressed his thanks to Moore County Sherrif Ronnie Field, stating “support from the Moore County Sherriff’s Office has been very good.”

The current plan is to have an interim administration chief until a final solution is found.

Blakeley has a long history in law enforcement. He is probably best known for an incident in Taylortown, where he was serving as police chief.

He reported certain activities to the State Bureau of Investigation, which led to an investigation where all town council members and town employees were questioned by SBI agents. The investigation led to the arrest of Mayor Ulysses Barrett Jr, but soured the relationship between the town and Blakeley, resulting in his firing.

He filed a suit against Taylortown for wrongful termination, resulting in a seven-year legal odyssey which resulted Blakeley receiving a $100,000 settlement from the town.

In the intervening years, Blakeley worked as a police trainer in Afghanistan for several years before coming to Vass two years ago to serve as police chief.

Vass has already published the chief position as open.

“We hope to have a resolution in the next couple of weeks,” said Callahan.

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