CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – A day after saying it had no record of an investigation into the convicted sex offender who infiltrated the Fluvanna County Fire Department, Virginia State Police confirmed Tuesday it is investigating Sammie Gene Morris Jr. and whether he violated his sex offender registry status.

Fluvanna County Fire Chief Andrew Pullen told Cville Right Now on Monday that he had reported the situation to the VSP and the Office of Emergency Medical Services, and that the county had hired a third-party investigator to look into the situation.

“There is an ongoing investigation into this to determine if there is a Sex Offender Registry violation,” VSP Sgt. Jessican Shehan told Cville Right Now in an email. “According to the First Sergeant over the unit- Chief Pullen has planned to meet this morning to discuss what happened to give Troopers more insight into his investigation.”

The Palmyra Fire Company resumed operation over the weekend after being temporarily closed following last week’s discovery that Morris Jr. had been, “participating in company activities and spending time” at the firehouse for six months to a year.

In a March 27 letter to the community, Pullen revealed that Morris Jr., “responded to several calls in the Kents Store area in a personal vehicle… exhibited suspicious behavior, was not recognized by responding personnel, and was ultimately turned away, including by the County Fire Chief.”

Morris Jr. was observed again at the Palmyra Fire Company and has now been instructed not to return.

A subsequent background check revealed to the county he is a registered sex offender “who has been recently charged with violating the terms of his registration.”

Morris’s Virginia State Police registry said he was convicted in 2013 of a charge of proposing a sex act with an individual over 15 using a communication device.

He was sentenced to 10 years in prison, with nine years of the sentence suspended. He registered as a sex offender in January 2014, and was convicted in Louisa County General District Court in 2016 of failure to renew his registry.

It’s unclear how frequently he was at the firehouse, “who he interacted with, or in what capacity he may have assisted,” according to Pullen’s letter.

“However, it is known that members of the public routinely visit the station, that he attempted to respond to emergency calls, and that family members of our personnel may have been in his presence,” Pullen wrote.

On Saturday, Pullen notified the community, “Following recent personnel and administrative changes, and with the support of our Medical Director and County Administrator, the Palmyra Volunteer Fire Company returned to normal operations at 0700 this (Saturday) morning.

“At this time, we are confident that no patients, community members, or any of our own personnel were harmed. However, it has been identified that established administrative policies—designed specifically to prevent this type of situation—were not followed. Additionally, a culture of complacency contributed to the issue going unrecognized.”