KALAMAZOO (WKZO-AM/FM) — The Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s deputy who challenged his boss in last year’s Democratic primary is now claiming he was the victim of political retribution.
Thomas Swafford claims on his Facebook page that, though he wasn’t forced to take a pay cut, Richard Fuller stripped him of his arrest powers, then demanded the surrender of his gun, badges and duty belt.
Fuller said the matter is being addressed.
“While we disagree with the facts of the matter, it is better handled through arbitration and mediation processes which have already begun,” Fuller said.
Fuller beat Swafford by nearly 7,000 votes last August, then defeated Galesburg Police Chief Jeff Heppler in another landslide three months later.
Swafford is still working at the Kalamazoo County Jail.
