A fire chief who’s facing ethics allegations from the state is firing back, calling the accusations “baseless” as he vows to “fight” the case.
Townsend Fire Chief Gary Shepherd is accused of violating the state’s conflict of interest law when his private company received more than $5 million from town contracts.
The State Ethics Commission on Thursday said the chief allegedly violated state law by having financial interests in town contracts.
A day later, Shepherd responded to the allegations, telling the Herald that “any suggestion of impropriety is baseless.”
Shepherd, who operates the private company Shepco, Inc., first entered into a $754,333 contract with the town for a bridge replacement project.
Then, his company agreed to a $4.7 million contract with the town for a water main

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