Published on: Nov 3, 2023
A former Newport Firefighter was in Newport Superior Court Thursday answering to charges for allegedly embezzling more than $100,000 from the Newport Firefighters IAFF Local 1080.
Marcus Cochran, 42, the treasurer of the Newport Firefighters Union from 2015 through 2022, pleaded not guilty to the embezzlement charges and was released on $10,000 surety bond.
According to a review of the court documents by WJAR NBC10, Cochran spent more than $26,000 on hotels, more than $21,000 on flights, more than $6000 on marinas, more than $10,000 on credit card payments, more than $4000 on meals, more than $2000 at bars and more than $2000 on rideshares.
In total, Cochran made $103,653.56 in unauthorized purchases.
After a Rhode Island State Police investigation, Cochran resigned from the fire department on February 3, 2023 and turned himself in on February 9th.
Cochran will be back in court for a pretrial conference on January 5, 2024.
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