SPRINGFIELD - While retired police detective Kevin Burnham was allegedly siphoning hundreds of thousands of dollars in drug seizure cash from the Springfield police evidence room, he was simultaneously being fairly generous to local elected officials.

Records filed with the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance show Burnham contributed about $1,600 in campaign donations to four candidates since 2007. They include former Hampden District Attorney Mark G. Mastroianni, now a federal judge; current Hampden District Attorney Anthony D. Gulluni; state Rep. Angelo Puppolo, D-Wilbraham; and U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, Springfield's longtime Democratic Congressman.

While the donations are not eye-popping amounts, given the charges against Burnham in Hampden Superior Court, they place the candidates in a somewhat awkward spot. Burnham, a 43-year veteran of the police force, is accused of stealing $385,000 from evidence room envelopes between late 2009 and 2014, the year of his retirement.

Officials with Attorney General Maura Healey's office, which is prosecuting the case, said Burnham took advantage of his position as the primary evidence room officer to loot sealed envelopes of cash, often leaving just the empty envelopes behind.



In one instance, he took all but $139 from an envelope containing $108,000 seized from a heroin dealer in 2014, according to the charges. In another case, nearly $25,000 disappeared from evidence seized from a dead defendant in 2012, court records state.

Burnham pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of larceny during his arraignment on Jan. 11. The allegations have roiled the police department; Commissioner John Barbieri has said the department was "blindsided" by the accusations and he has since ordered an extensive modernization of evidence room policies and procedures.

Of the campaign donations Burnham made, state records show he contributed $625 to Neal's campaign between 2007 and 2015 in $125 increments. He donated $300 to Gulluni over two months in 2014, $400 to Mastroianni over eight months in 2010 and $250 to Puppolo between 2011 and 2014.

The contributions could be considered particularly sticky for the former and current district attorneys. For his part, Gulluni said he plans to purge his $33,000 campaign account of the Burnham donations.

Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni.

"This situation has deeply saddened me. As a public official, upholding the public's trust is paramount and that has been allegedly violated. While this unfortunate situation is adjudicated I will be donating any funds in question to charity," Gulluni said in a statement.

Mastroianni declined comment as he was sworn in as a federal judge in June of 2014. His campaign account is still open with a $13,000 balance, state records show.

U.S. District Judge Mark G. Mastroianni.

Neal released a statement through a spokesman.

"Congressman Neal has known Kevin Burnham for more than 40 years. He has been a friend, a work colleague and a loyal supporter. During his time of need, the Congressman's thoughts are with Kevin and his family," said William Tranghese, spokesman for Neal.

Tranghese added that Neal has no plans to purge his staggering $2.7 million war chest of the drop-in-the-bucket figure.

U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, is shown here at a press conference with Springfield Police Commissioner John Barbieri in the background.

When Burnham retired, Neal delivered a glowing tribute to his old friend from the House floor.

"Ask anyone in the department who their favorite co-worker was, and the reply would likely be Kevin Burnham. They admired his dedication, strength and courage. They enjoyed his sense of humor and the laughter that seemed to follow him everywhere. And his loyalty was unquestioned," Neal told his colleagues, and later posted the tribute to a Congressional website. "And on behalf of the United States of America, it gives me personal satisfaction to congratulate him on an extraordinary career serving and protecting the citizens of Springfield. Well done Detective Burnham."

State Rep. Angelo Puppolo, D-Wilbraham.

Puppolo, a six-term representative, did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday. His campaign account contains around $200,000 and has exceeded that amount at times, putting him almost on a par with state Sen. President Stanley Rosenberg and Speaker of the House Robert DeLeo in terms of fund-raising.