By Devon Cormier
Staff Writer

Hooksett Police Chief Stephen Agrafiotis has returned to the Hooksett Police Department after the conclusion of an internal investigation that lasted more than two months.

The investigation began Jan. 17 after a complaint signed by 17 members of the police department was given to the Hooksett Police Commission. After putting Agrafiotis on paid administrative leave, the commission hired consultant Gerard Hayes to conduct the investigation and have now agreed with Hayes to reinstate Agrafiotis as of Wednesday, March 30.

Police Commissioner Richard Bairam was not available for comment, but a press release from the commission said all charges against Agrafiotis, save for one relating to performance appraisals and promotion boards, have been dismissed.

Agrafiotis said only that he is happy to be back at work after over two months of paid leave.

Union steward and Hooksett officer Jason Defina said he will meet with employees who signed the complaint about Agrafiotis's return.

"I don't want to comment at this point," Defina said. "I want to take some time and speak with the other employees."

The complaints filed by employees have not been made public and Defina said he did not want to comment about the specific nature of the complaints.

Bairam also declined to comment on the complaints. Hayes conducted interviews with all Hooksett police department employees during the investigation, including Agrafiotis, but has not spoken with past employees, something some find fault with. Since Agrafiotis took his post as chief in 1999, 16 officers and a handful of secretaries, dispatchers and administrative staff have left the department.

The turnover rate in 2003 was 20 percent, compared with a statewide police department turnover rate of 12.3 percent, according to the Director of Police Standards and Training Keith Lohmann. The 2003 turnover rate of 12.3 percent was much higher than normal, Lohmann said.

Meanwhile, dispatcher Jay Wilson remains on paid leave pending an investigation regarding him and Chief Agrafiotis about an unspecified incident. Wilson has been on paid leave since Dec. 6, when an incident between himself and Agrafiotis transpired at the Mount Vernon Fire Department where Wilson is a deputy chief, he said.

Sgt. Gregory Martakos is also involved in an internal investigation, although he is not on leave. Martakos declined to comment on the nature of the investigation, but said he has requested a public hearing with the police commission about the matter.

However, the statement released by the commission says that a full report from Hayes could be beneficial to the department as a whole.

"Notwithstanding the dismissal of the charges against the chief, this process has had the benefit of focusing the commission's attention on improving several department practices that may have contributed to the development of some of the complaints," said the department's press release. "As a result, they will be working together with Chief Agrafiotis to address the concerns that they have identified in order to bring the department together in a proactive fashion."

The statement also says Agrafiotis has the full support of the commission as he resumes his full range of duties.