Northampton Police Officer Pays For Driver's Gas

NORTHAMPTON (CBS) -- A police officer in Western Massachusetts is getting high praise after he helped a driver out of a jam on Monday.

The driver, Paul Zabawa, told the Daily Hampshire Gazette that he accidentally pumped 20 dollars worth of gas--when he only had less than two dollars in his wallet.

The attendant was getting ready to call police, when officer Michael Szawlowski pulled in to buy water before his shift.

The officer told Zabawa and the attendant that they'd have to call the police station--but then returned a minute later and paid Zabawa's bill.

Szawlowski refused the driver's offer to repay him, saying he was just trying to resolve a simple misunderstanding.

"Officers are taking a lot of flak for negativity," Zabawa told the Gazette. "There are good people out there."