Former Maine police officer charged with sexual exploitation of a child

A former Bar Harbor police officer has been indicted on sexual exploitation of a minor and other charges.

Larry Fickett, who last worked for the Bar Harbor Police Department eight years ago, was also charged with possession of child pornography and endangering the welfare of children.

Fickett, 41, was arrested at his home in Ellsworth on Thursday, May 2, following an investigation by Maine State Police, according to a complaint filed in Hancock County Unified Criminal Court. He was released the following day on $10,000 bail, according to jail staff.

Larry J Fickett

Hancock County District Attorney Robert Granger confirmed that Fickett is a former patrolman with the Bar Harbor Police Department. He declined further comment.

Fickett did not immediately respond to a Facebook message and there were no available court documents listing an attorney for him.

Before working for Bar Harbor, Fickett also previously worked as a patrol officer with the Presque Isle Police Department and as a deputy with the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department.

The lawsuit filed in court against Fickett alleges he “intentionally or knowingly permitted a child under the age of 12 to engage in sexually explicit conduct.” Larry J. Fickett knew or intended the conduct to be photographed.”

According to the complaint, the allegations occurred between January 1, 2021 and March 1 of this year.

Sexual exploitation of a minor is a Class A felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $50,000. The charge of possession of child pornography is a Class C felony, punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine, while the charge of child endangerment is a misdemeanor.

Further details about the allegations were not available Monday. The court has seized all other documents in the case.

According to a 2016 article in the Mount Desert Islander newspaper, Fickett resigned from his patrol job in February of that year after being suspended without pay for three days. He was suspended following an internal investigation for dishonesty and disgraceful conduct of a public servant, the Islander reported.

James Willis, Bar Harbor’s police chief at the time, authorized the investigation after receiving a complaint from another law enforcement agency that Fickett had reportedly asked one of its officers to omit information from a report, the article said.

Fickett, who joined the Bar Harbor department in September 2012, also received a written reprimand in November 2014, the newspaper reported. In this case, he violated a department order by using the lights and sirens on a patrol car while responding to a non-emergency situation.

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