OWLS HEAD, Maine — A firefighter here stole money from the fire station to fuel his personal truck, police say.
Christopher Gamage, 19, of Union, was arrested for theft and for misuse of identification on Tuesday.
A town official noticed unusual charges on one of the fire department’s fire truck gasoline credit cards and called the fire chief. In turn, chief Frank Ross called the sheriff’s office on Monday.
“[Ross] found $459.81 had been charged to the card since May 17,” wrote deputy James Moore in an affidavit filed in Rockland District Court.
The card had been used six times in Rockland and once in Union, he wrote.
“[Ross] stated [the person who did this] would have to know the alarm code to enter the building. Ross stated he felt [a member of the fire department had] taken the card,” Moore wrote. “No one has been authorized to use any of the cards for personal vehicles. The Owls Head Fire Department has a yearly budget of approximately $800 for fuel for their fire trucks.”
Moore got a list of gasoline invoices from the town office and tracked down a June 10 charge of $85 at Maritime Farms in Rockland. He then got video footage from the store of the pump that the gas was charged to and connected the Dodge pickup with Christopher Gamage, who works at the fire department.
When Moore went to Gamage’s house to confront him, the man said he knew why police were there, that he was working to pay back the town and that the credit card was back in the station. He told Moore he took the card “because he was in a bind,” Moore wrote.
Gamage was arrested and taken to Knox County Jail on Tuesday. He made bail of $500 the same day. Ross said Gamage will be fired.
He’s in a bigger bind now!
Another gas suckin Dodge……..:-)
Ok, let me get this str8. He stole 481 bucks in gas, and just paid a 500 dollar BAIL??? if he had money to pay the bail, then why didnt he just buy the gas himself instead of stealing form the fire department? This boy needs some serious training in the fine art of common sense
Ever hear of relatives. Guess he found a few for bail huh.
Guess he should have asked them to help him get out of his “bind” instead of stealing.
What a putz.
It just goes to show you, adversity doesn’t create character ( he was in a bind) it reveals it. And to JeffCol, this clown needs some serious training in moral development.
I know his parents; and they are good folk. I do know him as well and very saddened to see this happen.
Mighty fine police work!
fine police work? he used to a stolen credit card, they probably made literally 2 phone calls. one to the card issuer(bank). and the second to the store outside of the town the fire department is in… way to ruin your life and career Mr. gamage.
Christopher….19 years old and screwing your life up with foolish choices…..c’mon man….Crazy…
In a bind or not, it isn’t smart to steal from your employer or from any one else.
really? where do you get this from, do you know of any thefts in small town fire departments that have gone unreported? why havent you reported them?
I’m invoking my “executive privilege.”
A stupid foolish choice on his part… I hope he uses this life lesson to wisely do it right from here on out… if I was his judge I’d be inclined to give him a far chance to keep this from ruining his life.
Losah!!!
If he could “raise” the $500 bail, why couldn’t he have simply paid for the fuel himself rather than steal it through the town’s credit card?
Propably because, like all criminals and crooks, he didn’t think he’d get caught. They (crooks/criminals) all like to believe they are masterminds and can outwit the police/authorities. Jails are filled with these type of mental giants.
He’s 19. He made a mistake. I’m wondering how many people here, who claim moral superiority, have never done a single thing for which they are ashamed.
When I was 18, I worked in a convenience store. One day a older guy came in and bought $20 worth of gas. He gave me a fifty, and left. I didn’t stop him, and put the $30 in my pocket. I never saw him again. That was 20 years ago and I still think about that old guy everyday.
Lotta bad ‘firefighters’ in the news lately..Too bad for the negative P.R.
He is a 19 year old kid. He probably never thought he’d get caught and he probably didn’t know the limited gasoline budget the town had. He was wrong for doing this, but he is just a kid and admitted to his wrong doing. Let’s hope this is the last we hear about him.
It’s not the first time he’s done this or been in trouble. There is no excuse for stealing from the towns tax payers. Looks like he’ll never learn.