Dighton's embattled police chief to resign amid insider trading charges
DIGHTON — Dighton's embattled chief of police is resigning at the end of the month, Selectmen Chair Peter Caron said Monday afternoon.
"The Dighton Board of Selectmen has been made aware of Police Chief Shawn P. Cronin's intention to resign from his position as chief of the Dighton Police Department effective Saturday, Sept. 30," Caron said in a written statement Monday afternoon.
"On behalf of the community, the Board would like to thank Chief Cronin for his dedicated service to the Police Department, the Town and its residents."
Less than a year after Cronin was named Dighton's chief of police, Selectmen placed him on administrative leave indefinitely in June amid allegations Cronin had engaged in insider trader and hours after he had turned himself in to federal authorities to face the charges.
'A ticket to prison' Dighton Police Chief Shawn Cronin charged with insider trading
Who is serving as police chief now?
During the same emergency meeting last June, Selectmen appointed Sgt. George Nichols to serve as acting chief of police.
Who else is accused of crimes in the case?
Nichols' first official act as chief was to suspend Dighton Reserve Police Officer Joseph Dupont — a childhood friend of Cronin's who was also charged in the insider trading case.
2nd officer also charged Dighton police chief put on leave amid insider trading scandal
What charges does Cronin face?
Cronin has been charged with three counts of securities fraud under Title 15 and three counts of tender offer fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; one count of securities fraud under Title 18, which carries a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison; and one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and tender offer fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, according to a written statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
He self-surrendered at the FBI’s office in Massachusetts in June, according to a spokesperson for the U.S Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. He had his initial appearance in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts that same day and was released on an unsecured bond in the amount of $250,000.
What are Cronin and Dupont accused of doing?
Dupont was a vice president at Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and, on Jan. 31, 2020, was informed of Alexion’s upcoming acquisition of Portola Pharmaceuticals, Inc., according to a written statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York Thursday.
But before that acquisition was publicly announced, in April 2020, Dupont told his childhood friend, Cronin, about the acquisition. Not only were Cronin and Dupont childhood friends, but Cronin supervised Dupont in Dupont’s capacity as a reserve officer, the statement said. Based on the information Dupont gave Cronin, Cronin bought shares of Portola stock as well as out-of-the-money call options for Portola stock, the statement said.
What charges does Dupont face?
Dupont, who also surrendered to authorities in June, has been charged with one count of Title 15 securities fraud and one count of tender offer fraud, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, and one count of securities fraud under Title 18, which carries a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison.
Three other people were also charged in connection with the case, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Insider trading scandal: Dighton Police Chief Shawn Cronin to resign
