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Strippers, an argument, a stolen gun: Boston officer’s night out triggers internal probe

Melissa Dacier (left) and Neish Rivera are accused of stealing a Boston police officer's gun last weekend after a night out at a strip club and bar in Rhode Island. Pawtucket (R.I.) Police Department/The Providence Journal

A Boston police officer is on paid leave and facing an internal affairs investigation after a night out at a Rhode Island strip club and a bar with two women who have been charged with stealing his gun, authorities said.

The officer’s name and rank were not disclosed.

“Due to the fact that it’s an active and ongoing investigation, we can’t comment further on it,” Sergeant Detective John Boyle said Thursday.

The officer reported his gun was stolen from his car parked at a Hampton Inn in Pawtucket, R.I. around 2:30 a.m. Saturday, according to a police report provided to the Globe by the Providence Journal, which first reported the story.

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The gun, a Glock 22 owned by the Boston Police Department , had been locked in the glove box of the officer’s gray BMW, Pawtucket police wrote in the report.

The officer told police he had gone to the Hampton Inn to meet “Natalia,” a woman he said he met through a cousin. He said he and “Natalia,” whose real name, according to investigators, is Neish Rivera, had been exchanging messages through Instagram.

Rivera was one of three exotic dancers arrested for prostitution at the Foxy Lady strip club in Providence in December, according to the police report.

The officer met Rivera at a bar in the hotel before going to the Nara Lounge in Providence. The man said he had his gun on him, and that Rivera’s friend, identified as Melissa Dacier, met them at the lounge, according to the report.

After about two hours, the three went to a Providence strip club, The Cadillac Lounge. The officer told police Rivera had been a stripper at the Cadillac, but he was unsure if she still worked there, police wrote.

After spending time at The Cadillac Lounge, the trio went back to the Hampton Inn.

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On the third floor of the hotel, the women got into an argument with a man and woman. The man had accused Dacier and Rivera of stealing something. He told police he tried to stop the fighting.

Police said things eventually calmed down and the officer and the two women went to his hotel room, where they “hung out.”

At one point, Dacier said she needed a phone charger and the officer offered her his car keys because he had a charger in his car, the report said.

Dacier left, then came back and gave the man his keys and told him she needed to step out to use her phone, according to the report. Minutes later, Rivera told him she needed to leave and he walked her to the hotel lobby, where she told him she was going to try to contact Dacier. Rivera left the lobby, walking into the parking lot, according to the report.

After Rivera did not return, the officer went to look for her, but could not find her. He also discovered that the gun was missing from his car; the glove box was open and the cable lock used to secure it was on a seat of the car, authorities said.

The gun’s magazine and a bullet that had been in the chamber were in the center console, where he had left them when he secured his gun, according to the report.

Rivera, 25, of Pawtucket, was arrested shortly before 11 p.m. Saturday on a warrant for larceny of a firearm and conspiracy, according to the police report.

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She was arraigned Monday in the Sixth Distict Court in Providence. Bail was set at $5,000.

According to the police report, Rivera had been charged for prostitution at the Foxy Lady, in December. That club was shut down for three days after three of its dancers were arrested for allegedly offering to perform sexual acts on three undercover police detectives. The state’s Supreme Court later ruled it could reopen.

Dacier, 22, of Providence, was arrested shortly before 10 p.m. Saturday, on charges of larceny of a firearm, conspiracy, and failure to report for a summons in an unrelated incident, according to the police report.

She also was arraigned Monday in the Sixth District Court. Bail was also set at $5,000, police said.


Material from the Associated Press was used in this report. Previous Globe coverage was used. Danny McDonald can be reached at daniel.mcdonald@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @Danny__McDonald.