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Image by Westwood Minute/Darlene Wong Cancell.
6-28-2023 12:23am
Police Log: Theft of Credit Card from Gym Locker and Attempted Purchases Over $55,000
Darlene Cancell
Editor
The news described in Westwood Minute's weekly Police Log article series is primarily based on selected information from the Westwood Police Department's daily log and information provided by Lieutenant Christopher Sheehy and police staff. Occasionally, a few facts from other sources may be woven into these stories.
Monday, June 26th
Suspicious Photographer
2:37 p.m. A resident of Ridge Road contacted police regarding suspicious behavior. The resident noticed a vehicle that was parked in front of the resident’s home, and someone was taking pictures of the house. The resident provided a license plate number to police.
Check Washing and Mailbox Fishing
2:48 p.m. Westwood Police Detective Bureau was contacted by a Boston Police detective for assistance in investigating check fraud in Boston, regarding a check for $3,500 written on a Westwood resident’s bank account.
A Westwood detective spoke to the Westwood resident, who informed the detective that she routinely drops mail in post office boxes located in Westwood, Dedham, and West Roxbury. It is believed that she is the victim of "check washing" and “mailbox fishing.”
The Boston detective has identified a suspect as a woman from Dorchester. The suspect appears to have obtained the Westwood resident’s check and changed it to make it payable to the suspect, herself. The Boston detective noted that charges would be brought against the Dorchester woman.
Fraudulent Small Business Loan
4:46 p.m. A resident of School Street reported identity theft after receiving a bill for $405 from the U.S. Small Business Administration for a business loan which he never obtained.
A few months earlier, the resident had also reported to police that a Bank of America credit card had been fraudulently opened in his name. Police advised the resident to report the incident to the Federal Trade Commission, online.
Sunday, June 25th
Switched Plates
8:50 a.m. An officer was on patrol of the condominium complex at 120 University Avenue when the officer discovered a 2013 Chevrolet Silverado in the complex’s parking lot with a license plate belonging to a 2023 Toyota Tundra. The two vehicles were registered to different parties with the same last name. The officer seized the license plate, leaving a note on the vehicle’s windshield explaining the process to get the plate back.
Unresponsive Uber
11:20 a.m. After discovering his briefcase missing following an Uber drive from Boston to Westwood several days earlier, and being unable to reach the driver or Uber for assistance, a resident of Circuit Road filed a police report for lost or stolen property. The briefcase contained business paperwork, personal items, and an auto fob. The total value of the lost or stolen items was estimated to be about $1,700.
Friday, June 23rd
A Lesson Learned
4:47 p.m. A 2002 Chevy driven by a female teenager from Westwood struck a 2019 Ford driven by a woman from Natick. The Chevy turned onto Nahatan Street from French Street, and into the path of the oncoming Ford. Both vehicles received moderate front-end damage, but were able to drive away from the scene.
Police determined that the Ford had the right of way, while the Chevy was stopped at a stop sign, waiting to turn. No citation was issued.
Thursday, June 22nd
Suspicions of Improper Access to Finances
9:21 a.m. A man from Everett and woman from Milton told police they believed that someone had improperly obtained access to the property and bank accounts of the man’s deceased mother. She was a resident of Westwood’s Highland Glen Apartments. Police are investigating.
Wednesday, June 21st
Traveller's Credit Cards Stolen from Gym Locker
2:01 p.m. A man from Ponte Vedra, Florida, reported having his credit card and cell phone SIM card stolen from a locker at Life Time Fitness in the morning. He had placed his phone, wallet, and personal items in a locker around 10:30 a.m.
Around 11:45 a.m. when he was leaving, he noticed that two credit cards had been removed from his wallet, while the cash remained. He tried to use his phone, but the SIM card had been removed.
From a relative’s home in Canton, the man contacted his credit card company and cell phone provider to report the theft. His credit card company informed him that there had been two attempts around 10:45 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. to use his card at Tourneau, a jewelry store. One transaction was for over $35,000 and a second transaction was for over $20,400. The transactions were declined, and no money was lost.
Identity Theft
7:49 p.m. A resident of Briar Lane reported that someone had opened a credit card account in his name to purchase iPhones for a total of about $2,000. There was also an unauthorized attempt to access his Amazon account. Around June 14, 2023, he had started receiving emails regarding attempts to open credit card accounts in his name. Following these incidents, the resident changed the passwords to all of his accounts, contacted credit reporting agencies to freeze his credit, and established fraud alerts on his accounts.
Tuesday, June 20th
A Family Matter
5:13 p.m. An officer responded to Frugal Fannie’s on the report of a threat being made to an employee. When the officer arrived, the employee explained that a family argument with a relative in the store had been misinterpreted as threats. The relative was asked to leave, and did so, peacefully.
Thanks to Lieutenant Christopher Sheehy and Westwood Police for contributing information for this article.
