WAGENER, SC. ()- The police chief in Wagener, South Carolina is now off the job. 

Chief Mark Warchol has been involved with the Wagener Police Department for nearly three years.

He was promoted to police chief in June last year, but after a split decision by town council Monday night, he’s now been fired.

Now, Warchol is speaking out and defending himself.

“It hurts—because I feel like I’ve let the community down by speaking my mind here, trying to do things the right way, and losing my job over it,” said Warchol.

Council members say the mayor called the meeting following accusations against Chief Warchol that he sold multiple police cars without the mayor’s permission.

But the former chief says it’s also because of recent tensions between him and the mayor—stemming from former fire chief Tillman Rushton’s resignation last November.

“He resigned, his resignation letter said some things—to me it was opinions. The mayor took it as personal attacks, and from there the relationship has gone downhill,” Warchol said.

With the police chief off the job, Wagener is now relying on the Aiken County Sheriff’s Office to fill in the gaps.

That has some in the town raising concerns about safety for those who live there.

“Our citizens are not safe,” said Joyce Jeffcoat-Derr. “We no longer have somebody patrolling at night, and that’s a really big concern for business owners, for homeowners—-for all of us here in town.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I love the fact that Aiken County comes and help out as much as they can. But this is not their only job. It’s not their job to police Wagener 24/7,” said Patricia Middleton.

The police chief’s firing now has some in the town calling for a state investigation. 

“I would like to have Governor McMaster to form an investigation, and come here and investigate the level of malfeasance here. We’ve had such a bad thing. I don’t like to focus on the negative, but we’ve got to look forward,” Jeffcoat-Derr said.

As for Warchol, he’s appealed the decision by council, and is now working with attorneys as part of that process.

While he’s unsure about what the future holds, he calls his termination “unjustified”.

“I’ve never been in trouble, I’ve never been written up. If you want to go forward on grounds for suspension or something, okay. But, the straight termination is highly unjustified,” he added.

The former police chief intends to stay in Wagener and make amends, but says he may take extra measures if necessary.

“I’m hoping I can have a civilized conversation and can get this squared away. That’s my hope and prayer, because I don’t want to leave this town—I actually love this community. But if that doesn’t go as planned, then I’ll most likely seek a lawsuit against the town for the unlawful termination.”

With an election coming up in November, some in the town are now calling for a change in leadership.

“They don’t speak for the people. Nobody is asking the people what they think, and we don’t know anything until they’ve made up their minds based on their personal opinions,” said Middleton. “We need a change, and it needs to happen soon.”

We reached out to Mayor Mike Miller for comment about that and the future of the police department, but have not heard back.