Ex-Fire Chief Accused Of Sexually Assaulting Firefighters Arrested In Florida

TRENTON, NJ — A former fire chief and retired police officer accused in lawsuits of sexually assaulting young firefighters has been charged with criminal sexual contact by the New Jersey Attorney General's Office.

Robert Sinnott Jr., 52, remains in the Lee County Jail in Fort Myers, Florida. He has waived an extradition hearing, said Dan Prochilo, a spokesman for the New Jersey Attorney General's Office. Prochilo said the timing of Sinnott's extradition and transport to New Jersey to face prosecution is to be determined.

Sinnott was president of the Silverton Volunteer Fire Company from 2017-2021 and was a police officer until February 2021 with the Island Heights Police Department, serving for 23 years.

Sinnott, accused in a lawsuit in March of sexually abusing three young firefighters, was arrested Thursday in Cape Coral, Florida, Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in a news release on Friday.

Sinnott is being held there on a charge of being an out-of-state fugitive from justice, according to jail records. Platkin's office said Sinnott has been charged in New Jersey with four fourth-degree counts of criminal sexual contact and one second-degree count of official misconduct.

Investigators with the NJ Office of Public Integrity and Accountability investigation allege that in 2022 and 2023, Sinnott had forced multiple other firefighters, who alleged they saw Sinnott as a mentor and role model, into acts of non-consensual sexual contact, Platkin's office said. Sinnott is accused of creating situations where he would be alone with the victims at his residence in Toms River, the firehouse, or other locations. He then allegedly handcuffed them under the guise of “training,” or otherwise physically restrained them, before forcing acts of sexual contact upon them.

In some instances, the victims reported that Sinnott took photographs of them while they were restrained. The allegations were detailed in a 92-page lawsuit filed in March by three firefighters, who said incidents happened in 2017, 2021 and 2023.

A fourth firefighter filed suit in April, alleging Sinnott assaulted him on two occasions in 2023, once placing the victim in a wrist lock and restraining his arms from behind while "pressing his penis against Plaintiff’s back." The firefighter alleges that on another occasion, Sinnott pinned his arms, "pressing his pelvis and penis against Plaintiff’s restrained hands and back, and bending Plaintiff over a table in a simulation that was overtly sexual in nature and deeply traumatic," according to the lawsuit. Both incidents stopped when another firefighter answering a call came into the fire house, the lawsuit said.

That firefighter joined the company in 2017-18 when he was 17 and was an active member until January 2024, according to his lawsuit. The two lawsuits have since been combined, according to court records.

The lawsuits allege Sinnott had abused new recruits for years, at Sinnott's home but also "in full view of others at the firehouse."

The lawsuits have alleged officials with Silverton Fire Company and Toms River Fire District 2 failed to take action, an allegation fire company officials have denied.

Law enforcement was notified and Sinnott was put on administrative leave in 2023, Richard M. Braslow, the attorney for Toms River Fire District 2 and its Board of Fire Commissioners, said in March.

"Toms River Fire District 2 and its Board of Fire Commissioners cannot comment due to pending litigation," Braslow wrote in the emailed statement.

"However, I can share that the Fire Commissioners acted swiftly upon learning of the allegations, and various law enforcement authorities were notified so that the appropriate legal action and investigation could take place," he said. "The member in question has been on administrative leave since 2023."

Sinnott, who was representing himself against the lawsuits, responded to the fourth firefighter's lawsuit denying all of the allegations.

William Cunningham, Sinnott's attorney in the criminal matter, did not return an email on Monday seeking information about the extradition.

A separate lawsuit was filed Thursday against Sinnott by High Point Preferred Insurance, the homeowners insurance company covering the Toms River home where he had been living. That lawsuit seeks to remove the insurance company from all liability to cover any financial judgment against Sinnott.

Platkin's office said Sinnott was arrested by the Cape Coral Police SWAT Team with assistance from New Jersey's Office of Public Integrity and Accountability. It was unclear from public records how long he has been living in Florida.

"Search warrants were then executed on his residence, person, and vehicle," Platkin's office said.

New Jersey authorities said anyone with additional information about Sinnott’s conduct should contact Detective Brandon Mastropasqua at 609-960-3768 or Detective Malikah Daniels at 856-414-8855.

The state Office of Public Integrity and Accountability has a toll-free tip line at 1-844-OPIA-TIP for the public to report corruption. The Attorney General’s Office has an Anti-Corruption Reward Program that offers a reward of up to $25,000 for tips leading to a conviction for a crime involving public corruption: http://nj.gov/oag/corruption/reward.html.