POLAND — Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Deputy Dennis Sampson died Saturday of a possible heart attack while doing yardwork at his home, according to Sheriff Eric Samson.
“He was just a good, all-around guy,” Samson said of the deputy. “This is a huge loss.”
Sampson, 50, worked for the sheriff’s office for about 10 years before moving away, Samson said, but the deputy came back about 13 years ago and has since been a patrol officer.
“He was helpful, community-oriented, just a good guy,” Samson said. “If you wanted to know something about Poland, he was the guy to go to. Anything you needed, Dennis was just that guy. It’s a huge loss for us. He was valuable for the department and for Poland.”
Samson said the department’s focus will be trying to help Sampson’s family.
“He left behind a wife and son,” Samson said. “This was obviously unexpected. Today was about how we can help them and his co-workers.”
He said he was not entirely sure what happened, but that Sampson’s wife left the house and when she returned he has collapsed outside and it was obvious he had been doing yard work.
Sampson’s former boss and former Androscoggin County Sheriff Guy Desjardins shared his condolences on Facebook.
“Androscoggin County lost a great Deputy today, Deputy Dennis Sampson at such a young age. RIP my friend, what a tragedy,” Desjardins wrote.
![](https://www.sunjournal.com/wp-content/plugins/lazy-load/images/1x1.trans.gif)
Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Deputy Dennis Sampson gives a low-five to 5-year-old Sebastian Coron in Poland last Monday. Left is Angela, Sebastian’s mother, asking Sampson about a fire on Cobb Road. (Sun Journal file photo)
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