TRUTH IN CAPITANIO ‘TIP-OFF’ SPELLS VINDICATION FOR PPD OFFICER
By DAN VALENTI
PLANET VALENTI News and Commentary
(FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2015) — How did Paul Capitanio learn of a pending drug raid so that he could tip off a dealer? There have been many comments about this pointing to Cappy’s son-in-law, a Pittsfield police officer, accusing him of being the leaker.
THE PLANET has talked to sources intimately involved in the case. They shall at their request remain anonymous. We will, however, offer an unequivocal statement: the officer involved, Detective John Soules, was not — repeat not — one of our sources for this story.
Our purpose in writing this is to state that from what we have learned and to the best of our knowledge, Soules had no part in tipping off Capitanio. Thus, THE PLANET hopes this column ends the inaccurate and misleading speculations asserting otherwise. We hope to vindicate Soules and clear his name from the mud thrown from sewers such as Topix. THE PLANET won’t stand by and let a good man take an undeserved beating.
Rising Through the Ranks
Soules has been on the Pittfield police force since 2002, the year he entered the academy. He graduated in April 2003. For at least eight years, Soules served on the department’s Drug Task Force (DTF). He left the DTF in November 2014 and accepted a job as a PPD detective in November 2014. It’s important to note the reasons for the switch. Soules was never demoted. He wasn’t taken out of the DTF. He applied for a detective’s job for family reasons.
DTF work can mean 16-hour days. With two toddlers, Soules wanted more regular hours for himself and his wife, Holly, Capitanio’s daughter. One source told THE PLANET, “Personally, I also think he was tired of the frustration of dealing with a system that puts offenders back on the streets almost before the ink is dry on the warrant.”
Flashback to April 2013. Soules was still a member of DTF. He had worked on a case scheduled to culminate in a major drug raid the following month. However, his youngest daughter was born prematurely on April 20. That’s when Soules began his paternity leave.
In May, while he was home on leave, Soules received notice from police that the raid for which he had put in so many hours would take place. Soules had worked as the lead investigator, and both he and his department wanted him to participate.
How Capitanio Found Out
Here’s the crucial sequence that led to Capitanio finding out about the raid and tipping off the dealer:
(1) On the day of the raid, Soules told his wife that he was called into work for midnight that particular evening. Holly, having been used to her husband’s irregular schedule, understood. It was not a problem.
(2) The parents of the newborn were having problems associated with premature babies, nothing serious but enough to want another person in the house. Holly’s mom (Captanio’s wife) came to spend the night, since husband had been called into work for midnight.
(3) Capitanio, as one source put it, then “put two and two together.” According to the wire-tapped conversation Capitanio had with his dealer, Cappy said he thought “something was up,” since his son-in-law never works the midnight shift, especially since he was home on paternity leave. That “something” was the drug raid.
(4) Several days after Capitanio’s tip-off to his dealer, sources say, John Soules “was made aware of what Paul did.”
Officer Soules never tipped Capitanio off concerning the raid.
Soules Cleared by Chief, D.A., and Mayor
Capitanio’s action put Soules in a tight spot. Suspicion immediately fell on him because of his relationship with Capitanio. Consequently, Police Chief Mike Wynn, D.A. David Capeless, and Mayor Dan Bianchi investigated. The results exonerated Soules.
Outside of what this has done to Capitanio’s standing in the community, sources say the situation “has put a terrible strain” on the Capitanio and Soules families. Sources say the Soules family is still bothered that “Paul has kept mum for two years, refusing to admit his culpability and disclose how he came by the info.” One said Capitanio “allowed John’s integrity to be questioned and … derided by those in the press and on blogs. Even in court, Paul would not admit what he did but his lawyer, in a statement he read to the court, did verify” the information as reported on THE PLANET.
Soules’ supporters also call it “unfortunate” that The Berkshire Eagle “made a general statement referring to Paul’s knowledge ‘through a relationship with a police officer,’ and people have made erroneous assumptions.”
Nothing but time can ease the damage Capitanio has caused to his family and the Soules. The pain of will never completely go away. Nonetheless, THE PLANET hopes this airing may bring relief and closure to John and Holly Soules. They have lived with this for two years now.
It’s time that it be over and let a good man and cop reclaim his his good name.
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“If I’m not with you, I’m not so much of a man. I’m like a fish on the sand.” — George Harrison, “Fish on the Sand,” from the album Cloud 9, (1988).
“OPEN THE WINDOW, AUNT MILLIE.”
LOVE TO ALL.
Its all he said she said conjecture now isn’t it?
As part of his stiff 2 year probation sentence why was it not made clear what did he know and how did he know it during the kangeroo courtroom antics?
He could have been given a stiffer sentence and with his cooperation in revealing his source of the raid, reduced. But thats not the standard for the connected in Pittsfield politics.
A kid gets 5 years in prison for selling a joint to an undercover officer at Taconic while Mr. Capitanio gets a slap on the rist for warning drug dealers of a drug raid. Yeah that seems fair.
The end result of this case is tainted along with everything else. Doesn’t change a thing for me. Completely unacceptable.
Seems to me by logic, if Capitanio figured it out himself, he would have no reason not to say so. That’s how I feel about it. Along with the Fact that Pittsfield City is not credible in any way, shape or form. Who the hell would believe those three? NOT ME.
For all of the good they do for Pittsfield taxpayers, the rest of the councilors may as well also be on oxy. They automatically vote for any tax increase the Pittsfield schools demand and as Councilor Lothrop said, the new school project was the easiest decision he ever had to make. He didn’t even have a concern for taxpayers at all. Holyoke also had a new technical school built but it has done nothing to help that city and in fact Holyoke schools are now in receivership by the state.
PAT
THE PLANET has looked into the Holyoke situation. The parallels to Pittsfield are substantial. Our report shall come this week.
Thanks Dan. I look forward to reading your research on this.
Bianclouseau did an investigation?
I’d rather have a comatose City Councilor than a decade of LOw bullshit.
Still seems odd that with everything that goes on with drugs in Berkshire County he put 2 and 2 together and decided HIS dealers were a target of a raid. I hope Dan is right. However I’m not a big fan of unnamed sources. Then there’s the whole no jail time thing.Everything just seems so corrupt.
PAUL
Trust me, I would much prefer sources who allow their names to be used, but you have to understand that in a town such as Pittsfield, it’s rare for someone to want their name associated with a story, especially one like this. I do my best to verify sources and what they say. I an duty-bound to agree to the terms of use for information supplied by sources. I have never and will never betray the confidence of a source.
A really good account by the Discreet Cat in the last blog. Capitanio has many Mea Culpas. Most importantly to his Family. He’ll be fine. Time for out entire Community to come together and be civilized. But it’s almost impossible, it starts at the top.
I went back and read Discreet Cat comment in the last blog. It was good. Everyone hopes for Paul Capitanio and his family to recover. I do, however, think that having had more punishment for what he did would actually speed his recovery. Sometimes people really do have to hit rock bottom before they can resurface. Being too lenient with the seriousness of his problems could actually be a setback for him. Other people have to make sure he gets the message that his drug use was so out of control and he can’t go back to that place.
I understand what your saying Dan. Thanks
I think Capitanio should run for mayor. At least you know where he stands unlike the sleazy guy who is presently our mayor. He hasn’t spoken one word in truth since elected.