BOSTON — A former police captain with the Lawrence Police Department was arrested for allegedly assaulting a man while he was in Lawrence police custody, causing him bodily injury, and then submitting two false reports about the incident.
According to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, Michael M. Mangan, 47, of Derry, New Hampshire, was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of deprivation of rights under color of law and two counts of false reports. Mangan was arrested on Oct. 29, 2025, and was released on conditions following an initial appearance in federal court in Boston.
According to the indictment, on March 10, 2023, while serving as a captain with the Lawrence Police Department, Mangan assaulted a man who had been arrested, causing bodily injury to the victim.
The indictment also alleges that Mangan filed two false reports about the incident, including one in which he claimed the victim “slightly turned and bladed his body” toward him during booking and then “threw his right arm and outstretched hand at a high rate of speed” toward Mangan’s face in a grabbing motion. It further alleged that he stated the victim demonstrated “assaultive action,” that there was an “imminent threat of the victim reaching to grab at [Mangan’s] face,” and that he “utilized a straight arm take down” with his right arm across the victim’s chest.
“As alleged in the indictment, Mangan submitted these false reports intending to impede, obstruct or influence an ensuing federal investigation,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts said in its statement.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, the charge of deprivation of rights under color of law carries a potential sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. The false reports charge carries a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and federal statutes governing criminal sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kristina E. Barclay and Brian A. Fogerty of the Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.