Lynnfield firefighter arrested after naked 7-Eleven ‘dare’ leaves store clerk ‘horrified’

MIDDLETOWN, R.I. (WHDH) — A 60-year-old Lynnfield fire captain is facing a disorderly conduct charge after his 29-year-old girlfriend “dared” him to walk into a 7-Eleven in Rhode Island and buy a soda while completely naked, police said.

John H. Walsh was arrested on April 3 by Middletown officers responding to a report of a man who had walked into the convenience store at 726 Aquidneck Ave. and purchased a Diet Coke with no clothes on, according to a police report.

A “visibly shaken” store clerk, with tears in her eyes, told officers that she was “horrified” at the sight of Walsh’s exposed genitals as he approached the register “with a smile on his face,” police said.

“It’s not funny at all. In fact, it’s very scary when you have someone come in, completely naked in the middle of the day,” said the 7-Eleven employee, who did not want to be identified. “He was extremely comfortable in the store, handed me the Coke, and smiled, never said anything. It’s absolutely the worst thing that ever occurred in my life. I really think this man should have to register as a sex offender. What he did is horrible. What his girlfriend did was horrible, and she should be charged as well.”

Walsh and his girlfriend, Tammy McDougal, were later tracked down on Miantonomi Avenue after the clerk told police that he had driven off in black Mercedes Benz with a Massachusetts registration.

When asked about what had happened in the store, MacDougal allegedly told police that Walsh is her boyfriend and that she had “dared” him to walk into the store while naked because he told her it was “legal” in Rhode Island.

After speaking with witnesses, officers determined that there was probable cause to arrest Walsh on a charge of disorderly conduct.

An attempt to view a surveillance camera recording of the incident was unsuccessful because the system had crashed.

Walsh was transported to Middletown police headquarters, processed, and secured in a holding cell to await arraignment.

Lynnfield Fire Chief Glenn Davis said in a statement that Walsh, who was appointed to the department in 1979, has been placed on paid administrative leave pending an investigation.

Davis says his department is handling the situation “very seriously.”

McDougal has not been charged.
