ICE accused the police department in Old Orchard Beach of “knowingly” hiring an immigrant who is in the country illegally, which the police chief denied.

The illegal immigrant arrested after allegedly trying to buy a gun provided a Massachusetts driver’s license during the application process to the Maine police department he has been working for, according to officials.

The police officer arrested by immigration authorities in a Maine town was a trusted member of the force who is missed by his colleagues, officials said Wednesday, expressing frustration with the lack of information about the case from the federal government.