Three police officers in Lawrence, Massachusetts, have been placed on paid administrative leave within the last two weeks.
According to Nestor Castillo, communications officer for the office of Mayor Brian De Peña, one officer was arrested and charged by a different department.
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Captain Maurice Aguiler of the Lawrence Police Department was placed on leave Aug. 25, Castillo said. Detectives Shaun McLellan and Paul MacMillan were put on leave on Sept. 5 and Sept. 8, respectively.
"We don't want these types of things to be happing in Lawrence, but we have to face them when they come," said Castillo.
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In an interview with NBC10 Boston on Friday, Castillo said Aguiler was placed on leave for being aggressive and argumentative with someone at an event.
McLellan was arrested in Salem, New Hampshire, and is charged with simple domestic assault.
"In addition to the investigation by the Salem New Hampshire Police Department, the Lawrence Police Professional Standards Division is conducting an internal investigation," the Lawrence Police Department said of McLellan in a statement. "He has been placed on leave pending the outcome of future court proceedings. There is no further information available at this time."
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According to the mayor's office, on Thursday, MacMillan demanded to meet with the mayor for an undisclosed reason, and then threatened to go to De Peña's house.
"His last words were, like, 'The mayor needs to answer my questions and my phone calls, and if I don't get any information today, I'm going to go to his house,'" explained Castillo. "That can be interpreted in many ways — as a threat."
Neither MacMillan nor the Lawrence Police Department responded to NBC10 Boston's inquiry for comment.
"Everything is under investigation. And once we have everything cleared, of course, we'll be more than happy and willing to give that information to everybody," said Castillo.
