Vt. trooper accused of illegally accessing suspect’s social media account

DERBY, Vt. (WCAX) - A Vermont state trooper is accused of abusing his authority by illegally accessing a suspect’s social media account.

Paul Pennoyer, 29, of Barre Town, has been a trooper at the Derby barracks for four years.

Police say the trooper received consent to search a cellphone as part of an investigation and got log-in credentials for that person’s Facebook account.

Later, in a separate case, when police say he wasn’t supposed to, Pennoyer used that knowledge to read the suspect’s private messages.

He is due in court in February to answer to one charge of unauthorized access.

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