The first criminal trial in YDC begins on Monday against a former police officer who also worked at two universities

By DAMIEN FISHER, InDepthNH.org

Victor Malavet went from being investigated at his state job for allegedly abusing a teenage girl to working as a police officer and then as a security officer at two different New Hampshire college campuses.

Malavet, 61, of Gilford, is the first suspect to face criminal trial in the abuse scandal at the Sununu Youth Services Center, formerly known as YDC. Malavet’s trial begins Monday in Merrimack Superior Court in Concord.

Malavet is charged with multiple counts of aggravated sexual assault against a teenage girl detained at the Concord YDC in 2001, when he was a staff member at the residence. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

At the time of the alleged abuse, Malavet was placed under investigation by YDC administrators. Co-workers alleged an inappropriate relationship between Malavet and the girl, according to statements made at a previous court hearing.

The alleged victim reportedly lied during the 2001 investigation to protect Malavet. Although the 2001 investigation yielded no results, Malavet was transferred to the Youth Development Centre (YDC) in Manchester to separate him from the alleged victim.

Richmond City Manager Susan Harrington confirmed to InDepthNH.org that Malavet would later get a job as a police officer in the small Monadnock County town.

“I can confirm that on November 22, 2010, a Victor Malavet… was hired as a part-time police officer for the Richmond Police Department. I cannot confirm the exact date of his departure,” Harrington said in an email.

Richmond no longer has a municipal police department after voters dissolved the agency in 2019, opting for a patrol contract with the Cheshire County Sheriff’s Department. The officer in charge of the Richmond department in 2010 was Andrew Wood. He did not respond to a request for comment from InDepthNH.org.

Wood is currently awaiting trial on charges of stealing from taxpayers while he was police chief in Hancock. Wood allegedly billed Hancock for time he was not working or when he was working his second job in Richmond.

Malavet worked as a campus security officer at Keene State College from 2006 to 2015, before accepting a job as a campus security officer at Lakes Region Community College in Laconia.

Shannon Reid, executive director of Government Affairs and Communications for the New Hampshire Community College System, told InDepthNH.org that Malavet worked as a part-time officer until June 2017. When he was hired, Malavet passed the college’s background check, Reid said.

“At the time, our practice for new employees included conducting a reference check and a sex offender registry check,” Reid said. “We currently have a newer policy that includes a criminal background check.”

Malavet is not the only YDC suspect who went on to work in law enforcement. Jeffrey Buskey, accused of committing hundreds of brutal rapes against a single teenage girl, worked as an officer for the Sanbornton Police Department. InDepthNH.org is currently waging a court battle to obtain Buskey’s disciplinary record from Sanbornton.

Buskey was fired from Sanbornton around 2006 over allegations that he bounced a check.

The state has been slow to bring any of the YDC suspects to trial. Since the Attorney General’s Office created the YDC Task Force in 2019, only 11 men have been charged out of hundreds of alleged abusers identified by victims. No charges have been filed against any suspects since 2021, when 11 men were charged.

Since the charges were filed, the case against suspect Frank Davis has faded after he was declared incompetent to stand trial. Last month, another suspect, Gordon Thomas Searles, 68, died.