Placed on leave, Wayland police chief to resign next month

Wayland police Chief Sean Gibbons will resign in December as part of an “employment settlement agreement” with the town, officials announced Saturday.

Gibbons was placed on administrative leave in March, just four months after he was appointed Wayland’s police chief. Lieutenant Ed Burman has been serving as acting chief since then.

Former acting town manager Stephen Crane informed Gibbons in a March 31 letter that he was being placed on leave due to an “investigation of your performance as an employee of the Town of Wayland,” according to a town spokesman. The spokesman didn’t elaborate on what was being investigated.

Gibbons has seven days to revoke his acceptance of the agreement, after which the town’s select board plans to release details on it and a report on the investigation, town officials said in the statement.

“It is the town’s sincere belief that the course taken was done in the best interests of the town, the Police Department, and the residents of Wayland,” the statement said.

Gibbons could not be reached for comment over the weekend. His resignation will take effect Dec. 20, town officials said.

Since joining the Wayland force in 2002, Gibbons held various roles, including sergeant, training sergeant, administrative sergeant, and lieutenant, according to the Wayland Police Department’s website. He was named acting chief of the department in November 2020 and was appointed to the official role of chief in December of last year.

Gibbons started his career with the Los Angeles Police Department in 1994 and later joined the Sturbridge Police Department before working in Wayland, according to the department’s website.

HIRED IN 2002 Gibbons has also been a lieutenant and a sergeant in Wayland.