Former Fall River Police Officer, George “Sneaker” McDonald has died

A fixture in the Fall River community for years has sadly passed away.

According to the Fall River Police Department, retired officer George “Sneaker” McDonald has died.

In addition to being a Fall River Police Officer, McDonald was a fixture in Fall River youth baseball for many years, most notably running the Lafayette Park Junior Twilight Baseball League and also putting on the pads as an umpire.

Here is a spotlight from 2016 written by Fall River Police Department Captain Wayne Furtado.

“Officer McDonald was first appointed to the FRPD as a reserve patrolman November 24, 1957 assigned to Division 1. He received a permanent appointment November 26, 1961 and worked out of Division 2, night watch- route 22. He worked Uniform Division nights throughout his career eventually being assigned to Walking Beat 1A (downtown district) on Dec. 14, 1975. While assigned to WB1A Officer McDonald earned the nickname of “Sneaker” for his ability to sneak up on criminals without detection and apprehend them swiftly. Officer McDonald was officially commended 7 times for “Alertness and Efficiency” throughout his 31 year career. Officer McDonald is held in high regard by his co-workers and to this day is a pleasure to be around. Chief Racine visited “Sneaker” recently and enjoyed listening to him tell past stories of his love of his chosen profession and the community he served.”

“Officer McDonald was a fixture in the community off duty and devoted his life to helping the youth of Fall River in numerous ways. He was known best for his love of baseball and working with kids in the Flint section by running the Lafayette Park Junior Twilight Baseball League. Officer McDonald retired from the FRPD on January 8, 1988. He walked beat 1A right up to his last day of work. His presence has been missed since that day without question.”