Dover, NH Man Arrested and Charged With Making False Reports
A Dover man was arrested by state police on Thursday and charged with falsely reporting sexual and physical abuse to law enforcement as part of an ongoing investigation into the Youth Development Center.
David Sweeney, 44, was scheduled to be arraigned in Merrimack County Superior Court on Friday.
According to court documents, on July 25, 2019, former Attorney General Gordon MacDonald announced that the New Hampshire Department of Justice had initiated a criminal investigation into the physical and sexual abuse, as well as child endangerment which allegedly occurred at the YDC on River Road in Manchester.
The task force began their work on Jan. 27, 2020, and there are currently more than 200 suspected victims of physical, sexual and emotional abuse by YDC and Youth Detention Services staff, according to an affidavit.
On July 23, 2020, Sweeney was interviewed at the Merrimack County House of Corrections. He told investigators he was physically and sexually abused by staff members at YDC as a teen.
The abuse allegedly took place at King Cottage, which Sweeney described as a maximum-security cottage.
The problem is, records from YDC do not confirm Sweeney's report.
When investigators circled back around, Sweeney was asked if he wanted to cooperate and admit to falsely reporting what happened to him or if he wanted to continue and potentially face a felony for perjury.
"He stated, 'We might as well go for the felony, you know. Cause you're saying I wasn't there, you know. That's why I said check the records,'" Sweeney allegedly said.
Sweeney was charged on Thursday with four misdemeanor counts of false reports to law enforcement.
According to officials at the Attorney General's office, the charges and allegations are merely accusations and Sweeney is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The investigation into child abuse allegations at YDC remains active and ongoing.
Contact Managing News Editor Kimberley Haas at Kimberley.Haas@townsquaremedia.com.
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