Germain To Be Sworn In As Barnegat's New Police Chief In February

BARNEGAT, NJ - The Barnegat Police Department will have a new chief in February, according to a report in The Sandpaper.

The Township Committee tapped Keith Germain, 44, to serve as the new chief at the Nov. 14 Township Committee meeting. He will be sworn in in February.

Germain will be the third police chief the township has had in as many years. Chief Richard Dugan was appointed last March, after the township reached a protracted settlement with former chief Arthur Drexler.

“I can’t think of anyone more deserving to be our chief,” Mayor Albert Bille said of Germain. “We’ve received plenty of e-mails from residents and former residents who say he has done a great job. He has had experience in every type of police work. For a chief, he’s pretty young, and I hope he leads our department for a long time.”

Dugan has been running department operations since Drexler's suspension with pay back in July 2016.

Drexler disappeared from his office in late July of 2016. Township officials gave out no information about why he was gone. The township eventually referred the matter to the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office.

The Prosecutor's Office said they couldn't find any evidence of a criminal nature or that Drexler tried to deceive the township about his compensatory hours and referred the matter back to Barnegat. The township and Drexler eventually reached a settlement earlier this year.

Germain, a Barnegat native, joined the department in 1994. He has served as a dispatcher, patrol officer, detective, patrol division commander, administrative services division commander, founding member of the narcotics unit and founding member of the Barnegat SWAT team.

“I’m glad they have the confidence in me to serve as chief, and I will do the best that I can as we more forward.”

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Photo: Courtesy of the Barnegat Police Department.