A Middletown police officer was recently honored at the National Liberty Museum in Philadelphia for her investigatory work in the case of four young men who were killed.
Officer Megan Freer played an intricate part in the case that gained national attention in July. During that investigation, she quickly located the Solebury farm where the bodies of Dean Finocchiaro, Tom Meo, Mark Sturgis and Jimi Patrick were later found after days of exhaustive searching.
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Freer was recognized at the 12th annual Awards of Valor ceremony at the National Liberty Museum for involvement with the case. Freer was nominated for the award by Middletown Chief of Police Joseph Bartorilla earlier this summer.
Freer is the first Middletown police officer to receive the Award of Valor, according to Bartorilla.
“For our department, internally, an award like this is great for morale. Externally, it’s great for our department’s reputation in the county and in the region. But more than that I think the award, and specifically the type of great police work Megan did to earn this award, sends a great message to our township community that as a police department we are committed to do the very best job we can day in and day out to protect and safeguard our citizens and provide them with the highest quality of police service,” Bartorilla said in an email.
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“I was very surprised. No officer expects to ever be singled out for an award. There were a lot of moving parts working together this past July, I just started the outline of the puzzle,” explained Freer. “I work to provide the best level of police service to Middletown’s residents and visitors.”
“Growing up, I was taught to put 100 percent into everything I did. This has transcended into my career to give 100 percent to the community I serve,” Freer further added.
