Firefighter called saboteur

NORWALK — While city officials have been battling with the Norwalk Fire Department concerning overtime, the department has faced its own internal issues. Norwalk safety service director Mike White addressed the shortcomings, including a firefighter attempting to get a co-worker fired and another firefighter, who also serves as a special deputy, allegedly stalking a man with whom he has a pending court case and attempting to get him criminally investigated. The Register and Reflector made a public records request to the city for the disciplinary reports and administrative investigations involving fire department personnel. In February 2021, an anonymous complaint was sent to the city and Norwalk Fire Department. An envelope was received in the mail with no return address and was postmarked from Milan, Ohio. In the envelope were two pieces of paper, one with a short letter and the second was a screenshot of a website. The letter stated: "This letter and picture are to inform you that one of your city firefighters sent pictures of himself while on duty to my wife through an online dating site. I have enclosed the picture and circled the picture that I am referring to. His name is Jeff Phillips and my wife told me that she met him on Ashley Madison and he told her he took the picture in the bathroom at the fire station. We are not from this area, so I have no idea if this is true or not. I would think that this conduct would be frowned upon as a member of the safety forces of your community. Thank you for your time." The picture included shows a notification board on a website, with three images, one circled, that appears to show Lt. Jeff Phillips smiling in one photo and a picture of him shirtless and in underwear behind a green wall. At the time, Mayor Dave Light began to look into the matter, as previous safety service director Ralph Fegley resigned days prior. Light called Phillips that day, according to a city report. Phillips told him he was not surprised by the complaint. Phillips confirmed it was him in the photos. He said from February and May 2017, he sent messages to fire Lt. Charlie Hillman's wife on Ashley Madison, according to the report. Phillips said Hillman and his wife were separated at the time. Ashley Madison is an online dating service marketed toward those who are married or in a relationship. The company made headlines in 2015 when all of its customer data was stolen by hackers. "It is obvious this information was an attempt to damage Lt. Jeff Phillips' reputation during the promotional process," Light wrote in the report. Phillips said the photo was taken at the old fire station but said he never told Hillman's wife where the photo was taken, according to the report. The report said only a person familiar with the old fire station would know where the picture was taken. Phillips told Light he applied for an assistant fire chief position in December 2019 and was told by then fire Captain Rick Perry if he continued the application process, the Ashley Madison information would likely be made public, according to the report Perry also applied for the same promotion, but both later withdrew their names from consideration. The letter was sent to Norwalk City Hall and the fire chief after Phillips reapplied for the assistant fire chief position. He had successfully passed the written portion of the test when the information was sent to the city. Fire Chief Ron Luttrell questioned Hillman about the anonymous complaint on March 5, who denied any involvement and could not think of anyone responsible for it, the report said. White took over the administrative investigation later in March and spoke with Hillman about the situation on March 16. "He initially denied knowledge," White wrote in the report, but later acknowledged he was responsible for sending the letter. Hillman received a verbal warning from Luttrell on April 12, 2021, for allegedly being dishonest when questioned during an initial investigation and misfeasance for allegedly performing or taking part in actions with an improper motive on March 5, 2021. But White was dissatisfied with how Luttrell handled the investigation. "The (letter) was sent to sabotage someone's career. Charlie advised me that you never asked him if he knew anything about the incident, you only asked if he printed it at work or if he mailed it," White wrote to Luttrell after the reprimand. "You sent me an email saying you spoke with (Hillman), he denied everything and you believed him. Case closed. It was clear from the evidence in the case this was not likely, yet little effort was made to resolve the investigation." * Coming Saturday: Firefighter who is also a special deputy allegedly stalked foe, tried to get him investigated.