Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Responding to recent criticism by borough council members Liz Thompson and Andrew Hughes about his oversight of former borough police chief Robert Shupp, Hellertown mayor David Heintzelman addressed council from the floor at a meeting Monday night. Shupp recently pleaded guilty to stealing borough funds while he was chief and was sentenced to jail.

Heintzelman said he was manipulated by the former police chief, who he said “was trusted by everyone.”

“We thought we knew the man,” he said. “We didn’t.”

Heintzelman said Shupp utilized several schemes to steal money, including sham investigations that were set up so he could obtain petty cash. He was also the only person with the combination to the evidence room safe in which forfeited money was kept, the mayor said, and he submitted fraudulent time cards in order to be paid for comp time to which he wasn’t entitled.

Heintzelman told council that Shupp was “very good” at managing his department’s budget in a way that hid the comp time theft until he “became excessively greedy in 2023.” That was when council, led by Hughes, began to investigate what appeared to be bookkeeping abnormalities. Ultimately, Shupp resigned, and was charged after an investigation that involved the Northampton County District Attorney’s office revealed that he had stolen approximately $120,000 from the borough.

“(Shupp) saw cracks in the system and he exploited them,” said Heintzelman, who is currently running unopposed for a third term as mayor. “I have been up many nights going through things and wondering if I could have done more and wondering why I didn’t see things.” Ultimately, he said, he trusted the chief and that trust was “used against” him and the borough.

Heintzelman called the questions raised by Thompson and Hughes “divisive,” and accused Hughes of eyeing the office of mayor for himself, which Hughes denied.

“I will not resign because of your exploitive and harassing statements,” Heintzelman said.

Thompson, who read from a statement, said residents deserve to know why the borough was not entitled to approximately $80,000 in restitution from Shupp, who paid back a little over $40,000 as part of his plea agreement.

“What has really divided council is the lies, the coverup and the lack of truth from within,” she said.

“We do make mistakes. None of us is perfect,” said Hughes. “But what you have to do is you have to recognize them. You have to take ownership of them.”

“I am not running for mayor nor have I ever run for mayor nor do I have any intention to run for mayor,” he declared.

The tenor of the discussion began to change during the public comment period that followed the tense exchanges between Heintzelman, Hughes and Thompson, when Thompson’s husband–Matt Brady–addressed council.

“I don’t see any nefarious political aspirations for anybody,” he said. “You need processes in place to prevent this from happening.”

“I don’t see this as a personal attack on you, Dave,” he told Heintzelman. “The fact remains, $80,000 is gone. Let’s not have that happen again.”

Thompson then said that she doesn’t solely blame the mayor for the lack of oversight that allowed Shupp to steal comp time, and she said she apologized if he felt that all of the doubt and blame reflected in her questions seemed directed at him.

Heintzelman accepted the apology and said, “I truthfully think what your husband said is the start of a new healing day.”

He added that he wants to move on from the black eye Shupp gave the department by working with the current police chief to institute changes that will make the department more transparent and more accountable. For example, a mission statement is currently in the works, and department accreditation is a longer-term goal. Heintzelman said he didn’t have the kind of working relationship and communication he now has with Chief James Baitinger with Shupp, who was described as secretive.

Borough manager Cathy Hartranft confirmed this and noted that things have changed in the wake of Shupp’s resignation and ultimate conviction, such as with the implementation of a signature requirement on time sheets for department heads.

“I don’t think the former chief brought the mayor in and explained to him his responsibilities,” she said. “I think everybody’s heart is in the right place, and your integrity and your intentions are there.”

At the conclusion of the discussion, Thompson and others said they felt it had been positive.

“We had dialogue tonight for the first time,” she said. “That’s where a lot of the divisiveness and mistrust came from, because we weren’t afforded that.”

“I think it was a very good 90 minutes,” added council president Tom Rieger.

The next Hellertown Borough Council meeting is scheduled to be held Monday, June 2 at 7 p.m. at Borough Hall and online.