Elio Floriano, a veteran Public Works employee, has been appointed by the Board of Selectmen to be acting building inspector to take the place of Dave Maiden. Floriano is a certified building official who has been the assistant building official.

Meanwhile, the state's attorney's office has found no criminal wrongdoing in its investigation of the town Building Department.

"After an examination of available evidence and numerous witness interviews, it is the opinion of this office that the case lacks a criminal aspect," Inspector Douglas Jowett wrote in a May 25 letter to First Selectman Michael Freda.

Floriano's appointment is for 180 days and was made at the June 3 selectmen meeting, about a week after Building Official Dave Maiden was placed on paid leave.

The decision to place Maiden on leave came around a time when the Building Department was undergoing both criminal and internal investigation. Neither Freda nor Public Works Director Lynn Sadosky would discuss the situation further, saying it is a "personnel issue." Freda said that the inquiries may go on for an additional few months and he is unable to comment at this time because of the legal aspects of the case.

Maiden's attorney, John Gesmonde, said he's not surprised that criminal wrongdoing was not found. He called the state's attorney's probe "another stressful and unnecessary process" for Maiden.

"I don't know what they're doing," he said. "No one has accused David of taking any money. The people who are investigating are not experts in building or land use. I don't know what their contention is.

"They have their own rules, which David followed. Now they want to change them," he contended. "They are apparently saying that Dave has charged fees that are not on the list of charges. We're pretty close to the end of the investigation. Hopefully, we will get a resolution soon."

The town has ordered an exhaustive internal audit of the Building Department to look for possibly lost revenue through procedural errors. Freda has expressed his desire that the audit, being conducted by the New London accounting firm of Kostin, Ruffkess and Company, will help create a more sophisticated and professional environment there.

Painting and remodeling contractor Andrew Vallombroso spoke at the June 3 meeting about his experience working in North Haven. He remarked that about six months ago he alerted Freda to events and problems that were occurring in the building official's office that were personal to him and his family. He thanked Freda for bringing it to the next level. Vallombroso stated that based on what he learned in his certification classes, he has seen things in the department that have been "very troublesome." He said that he hopes "nothing will get swept under the rug." He also said that there have been "violations of Connecticut state statutes."