THETFORD — A town employee who was suspended after being accused of making a threatening comment against another social media user has been reinstated to one of his two jobs.
Nathan Maxwell, 41, will continue serving as the interim public works director, a position he has held since October, but he has lost his job as recreation director, a position he held for the past four years, according to Tom Yennerell, Thetford’s interim town manager.
As recreation director, Maxwell worked with adults, young athletes and youth sports coaches.
He will not have contact with them or other members of the public in his new position, Yennerell sad, which was part of the reason town officials decided to reinstate Maxwell only to the public works position.
Though his title has changed, his salary is the same; Maxwell will still be paid $67,800 per year, Yennerell said.
“The Town of Thetford does not support, nor does it have any tolerance for derogatory or distasteful language or behavior under any circumstance,” Yennerell wrote in an email Monday, announcing the results of the investigation. “Recently a Town of Thetford employee, Nathan Maxwell, allegedly displayed such behavior.”
Though the town took issue with the comment, Yennerell said, officials wanted to keep Maxwell on as the head of public works.
Maxwell has been doing “really good work and showing a lot of initiative” since he took on the job in October, Yennerell added.
“The town really needs somebody in that position and would like to keep him there and keep infrastructure projects moving,” Yennerell said.
The town’s decision follows an investigation Thetford officials launched late last month after learning that a TikTok user with the name Nathaniel Maxwell posted what many viewed as a threatening comment against Jessica Luther Rummel, a popular user on the social media site who identifies as Hindu and wears a bindi.
“I don’t know, but thanks for the target on the forehead. That makes things easier,” the post read.
Rummel shared the comment with her 164,000 followers last week in a video that garnered over a million views. Another video surfaced appearing to show Maxwell making crude remarks about women.
Within hours, the town and Maxwell’s former employer, Thetford Academy, received dozens of calls and emails from people across the country, calling for Maxwell to be dismissed from his positions. He had not been employed by the school since spring 2019.
Town officials suspended Maxwell with pay when they launched an investigation into the comment.
Maxwell could not be reached for comment Monday.
Anna Merriman can be reached at amerriman@vnews.com or 603-727-3216.