ILLINOIS — Two Aurora firefighters have been demoted after a bizarre and dangerous confrontation with a police officer, in which they allegedly forced the officer off the road using their fire engine. Aurora’s fire chief called the behavior “alarming” and confirmed internal disciplinary action.
Police Officer Forced Off the Road
The incident happened on February 25 around 7 p.m. when Aurora Police Sgt. Tony Spano was leaving a city facility near East Hampden Avenue and Dawson Street. While driving west in a marked police car, he encountered a fire engine approaching from the opposite direction.
That fire engine, carrying Lt. John Casessa and Engineer Ryan Endly, reportedly turned its spotlight on the police vehicle and veered into its lane, forcing the officer off the road to avoid a collision. No one was injured, and the squad car was not damaged, but the behavior triggered an immediate internal investigation.
Firefighters Demoted for ‘Reckless’ Behavior
According to CBS Colorado, the fire department confirmed that both Casessa and Endly were demoted from their positions following disciplinary reviews in May.
- Endly admitted to the behavior but failed to explain his actions or prevent the misconduct.
- Casessa, who was the officer in charge at the time, was also faulted for not supervising properly and for failing to intervene.
Both were reassigned to different stations after the incident and have since appealed their demotions. Surveillance footage reportedly captured the confrontation, but the city of Aurora declined to release it, citing personnel privacy laws.
Fire Chief Reacts to Dangerous Conduct
Aurora Fire Chief Alec Oughton stated the department was “alarmed” by the actions and emphasized that deviations from protocol would be addressed swiftly.
“Any deviation from AFR’s policies and standards will not be tolerated and will be swiftly addressed, as was done here,” Oughton said in a written statement…