BOSTON --
The Boston firefighter who was busted in a prostitution sting over the weekend is back on the job after pleading not guilty to the charge.
The Boston Herald reported that city fire department officials decided against placing Collin M. Herelle, 44, of Dorchester, on leave while his case is being reviewed.
Herelle was arrested Friday night when he allegedly offered an undercover officer $29 for oral sex on Blue Hill Avenue, according to a police report. He was on duty at the time.
Herelle, who is married, has been a firefighter for six years and is assigned to Engine 4, which is on Cambridge Street in Boston's old West End. He made $98,000 last year.
He was ordered to complete a department support and testing program and told to stay away from Blue Hill Avenue and La Grange Place where he was arrested during Operation Squeeze.
Herelle's arrest follows several other incidents in which Boston fire department personnel have been arrested. In March, a firefighter was arrested for allegedly smoking marijuana in a department car. In April, a firefighter was arrested after allegedly buying OxyContin pills from a South Boston drug dealer, the Herald reported.
The city firefighter's union has been locked in a contentious contract dispute for months, with much of the debate revolving around the city's demand the firefighters submit to routine drug and alcohol testing.
