Picture the small American town of Wallsocket. The stereotypical white picket fences sprinkled with American flags at the end of each perfectly trimmed yard. The neighborhood kids chase one another with sticks and you can smell dinner being cooked on your way home from walking the dog. Every person who lives here has known each other for years and nobody asks a lot of questions.
Wallsocket is a town that has been virtually crimeless since I was born (aside from some of the trespassing and vandalism caused by some of our peers), until two weeks ago. Local man Joshua Domingo was exposed for slowly siphoning money from his clients at Columbia Bank leaving the whole town in shock. Apparently, Domingo had been doing this for over a decade.
The case highlighted the actions of an individual who chose to rationalize bad decisions over leading an honest livelihood. Domingo’s actions also raised some questions about how Wallsocket institutions should better protect themselves from such malpractices in the future.
Being a citizen and a business in a small town comes with the blessing and burden of knowing every person around you. The event of a crime in Wallsocket is enough to stay in people’s heads for years—the breach of trust, parents’ afraid for their children, and the general air of suspicion.
Fraud is a surprise to anyone, especially something like long-term bank embezzlement. This is something you usually hear about on the 24-hour news cycle, not our local PBS channel. It is clear that our small town of Wallsocket can be used as a cautionary tale for other towns and cities across the country.
If fraud can happen here at such a high level, what does that mean for the rest of our community? Those who are respected and trusted can be capable of committing serious crimes if they are driven by greed and selfishness. It is shocking and honestly, a betrayal to know that just anyone can do something like this.
In Wallsocket, I see my parents work hard. This could have happened to my family, my neighbors, or the house the next street over, losing their livelihood over one person’s selfishness. I feel so bad for those affected by this crime.
One of the questions I have mentioned earlier is how do good people rationalize bad decisions? This is a crime that will have long-term effects on our small community where we only have one another.
Our courageous community will get through this together. Domingo has not only stolen from us but has breached the trust of local institutions we have trusted for decades. My family and our neighbors built their lives by working hard for the life they live. What’s next for Wallsocket? If Domingo is capable of robbing over the span of a decade, what else should we be wary of?
However, we must not panic. More than anything, we need to be strong. I love my hometown, as much as I like to dog on it. We have a really special community here, and it shouldn’t be tainted by the actions of one selfish man.
There is a sense of love and belonging that cannot be found elsewhere in Wallsocket. Sure, I get claustrophobic around here since the most we have is basically a stone’s toss away, but I am shocked to see the behavior of one man affect the lives of so many of us. Instead, we should take action to ensure that this kind of thing does not happen again. Maybe taking precautions like higher security will make us feel safe and more secure.
