JOHN RUCH
FOREST HILLS/WOODBOURNE—A Boston Police officer stationed at District E-18, which patrols part of Jamaica Plain, was charged last week with allegedly robbing a gas station with his service pistol.
Patrol Officer Michael T. Jones, 44, a 20-year Boston Police Department (BPD) veteran, was arrested Jan. 11 and charged with armed robbery; assault with intent to rob; assault with a dangerous weapon; assault and battery with a dangerous weapon; and assault and battery.
Earlier that day, prosecutors allege, Jones robbed a Roslindale gas station at gunpoint, taking cash from the register. Jones allegedly then tried to rob a man outside the station while pressing a gun to his belly, but the man did not have any money.
Jones was not in uniform or on duty at the time of the alleged crimes, according to Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office spokesperson Erika Gully-Santiago. He was arrested after being pulled over while driving a private vehicle, police and prosecutors said.
Jones, a Dorchester resident, was arraigned Jan. 14 at JP’s Faulkner Hospital, where he reportedly had been admitted for an irregular heartbeat. In the hospital room, a judge from JP’s West Roxbury District Court ordered Jones held on $50,000 cash bail. Jones pleaded not guilty.
BPD spokesperson Officer James Kenneally said Jones was most recently assigned to a desk job following an injury. While Jones’s rank is “patrol officer,” that is just a standard term. He did not actively patrol E-18, including its Forest Hills/Woodbourne section, in recent times.
Kenneally said Jones was suspended for 30 days in 1999 when an internal BPD investigation sustained a civilian complaint related to a “domestic incident.”
Kenneally said that Jones is not currently an active suspect in any other crimes. Investigating possible connections to other crimes is standard following any major arrest.
Jones reportedly had been out sick for several days recently. He has been placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation and the court case. His next court appearance is scheduled for Feb. 6. Kenneally said Jones’s position at E-18 will be filled by another officer.