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1-02-2024 11:24pm
Police Log: Teenage Passenger of 17-Year Old Drunk Driver is Injured in Collision
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, January 1st
Wallet Stolen while Shopping at Wegmans
3:08 p.m. A woman reported having her wallet stolen while inside the Wegmans grocery store on University Avenue on Saturday, December 31st. The wallet is blue, 6” wide, and has soccer ball sticker on one side. It contained a driver’s license, personal papers, and a MasterCard credit card belonging to the victim’s daughter. The credit card has been frozen and there appears to be no financial loss suffered.
Parents Shoplift with Two Children in Tow
3:56 p.m. Officers were dispatched to Wegmans on University Avenue to respond to a report of a larceny in progress. Police found the suspects, two parents who were accompanied by their 10 year-old and 6 year-old children, on the sidewalk near the driveway entrance to the University Station shopping area. The parents admitted that they had taken food and children’s books from the store without paying, and that they had been stopped by Wegmans asset protection personnel earlier, when the merchandise had been recovered. The value of the items was just under $200.
The couple agreed to return to Wegmans with police to speak with asset protection staff. The husband agreed to pay for the merchandise and Wegmans agreed not to pursue criminal charges against either parent; however, trespass notices were given. Additionally, police filed a 51A report for suspected child neglect.
Shoplifting for Diapers and Lobster
6:32 p.m. An officer responded to Wegmans supermarket where asset protection staff had a suspect in the loss prevention office. The suspect was a man from Canton, believed to have attempted to leave the store with $181 worth of merchandise including diapers, wipes, lobster, and shrimp. The man was given a trespass notice.
Suspect Denies Shoplifting
7:39 p.m. Police responded to Wegmans supermarket and spoke to the asset protection manager who was with a shoplifting suspect in the parking lot. The staff member explained that he had observed the suspect taking greeting cards, cheese, reusable shopping bags, and cat food, and failing to pay.
The suspect claimed to have purchased the items at another market and claimed to have receipts. The suspect provided a receipt for $14.16 for water and oats, but lacked receipts for the other $91 of merchandise. Store staff scanned the items, proving that they were the property of Wegmans. The suspect, a man from Sharon, refused to take responsibility for shoplifting and refused to pay for the items.
The Sharon resident was given a trespass notice and will be receiving a summons to Dedham District Court on a charge of shoplifting.
Vandal(s) Remove Badge from Car's Grille
8:35 p.m. Police met with a woman from Norwood who informed police that while at the urgent care on Brigham Way, her Cadillac was vandalized. She was at the urgent care with a friend for three hours, beginning around 5:30 p.m., and when she exited, she noticed that the Cadillac badge on her vehicle’s front grille was missing.
Suspicious Car in Church Parking Lot
8:23 p.m. Police investigated a report of suspicious activity when a vehicle was spotted at night in the rear parking lot of First Baptist Church of Westwood. Police discovered an adult couple in a car. They were sent on their way.
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Saturday, December 30th
Police Obtain Images of Suspected Wallet Thieves
3:45 p.m. A woman from Canton reported to Westwood Police that her wallet was taken from her purse, which was placed in her shopping cart at Wegmans on University Avenue. She discovered her wallet was missing upon attempting to pay for her items. The victim also started receiving text alerts from her credit card companies about transactions that were declined at the Apple store in Legacy Place and Staples, both in Dedham. At this time, it appears none of the attempted transactions were successful.
There are two suspects based on store video. One is described as a tan female with dark hair who wore a black sweatshirt, jeans, and a scarf. The other is described as a tan male wearing a baseball cap with white logo, dark shirt and dark pants.
Sounds Like Gun Shots
10:21 p.m. A caller on North Street reported hearing a succession of what sounded like 6 to 7 gunshots. Two police cruisers responded, but no such noises were heard. Nothing was found to be amiss.
Friday, December 29th
Text Message Threats
5:21 p.m. A resident of Stearns Street reported receiving a text message threatening bodily harm. The sender accused the resident of stealing a wallet. A text conversation followed in which it became apparent that the sender was looking for a different individual, not the Westwood resident. Police contacted the phone number associated with the sender, but it turned out to be an out-of-service landline in Rhode Island, indicating that the sender’s apparent phone number was a spoofed number.
Thursday, December 28th
Items Stolen from Vehicle's Trunk
9:45 p.m. A Westwood Police officer met a Walpole resident in front of the Nordstrom store on University Avenue to take a report of theft from her 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee. The woman informed the officer that she had made exchanges at Nordstrom around 7:00 p.m., and returned to her car to deposit the clothes in the trunk. She went to the Target store to continue shopping, and when she returned to her vehicle, she discovered that the Nordstrom bags were missing from her trunk. The Walpole resident estimated the stolen items to be worth $389.
Teenage Passenger Injured in Accident Involving a Juvenile Drunk Driver
10:31 p.m. An officer responded to the intersection of Pond and Clapboardtree streets where he observed a Honda CRV off-road, having collided with a tree. As he approached, a homeowner who lives at the address near the crash site motioned that the officer should hurry up. The officer discovered a 16 year-old girl from Canton with injuries and the vehicle air bags deployed. The juvenile was treated by Westwood Fire paramedics and transported to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital Needham.
The homeowner informed police that he heard a crash, and exited his home to find the victim lying on the ground and a group of youths walking away from the scene of the crash.
The officer spoke to the group of youths, who were all from Canton. He noticed the driver, a 17 year-old male, exhibited signs of intoxication. Following field sobriety tests, the officer placed the driver under arrest for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of liquor, negligent operation of a motor vehicle and possession of an open container of alcohol. The youth was released to his parents after being booked at the Westwood Police Station.
The parents of the other youths, a 17 year-old female and 17 year old male, were notified of the incident.
Wednesday, December 27th
Suspicious Man Makes Unexpected Visit to Resident's Home
4:16 p.m. A resident of Stonegate Lane reported an incident in which an unknown male approached the resident’s home, carrying what appeared to be alcohol. The individual informed the resident that someone had sent him to the home, but he was unable to explain for what reason. He appeared confused. He then entered a motor vehicle and drove off, in the direction of Dover. An officer checked the area but was unable to locate the subject.
Drunk Driving in Area of High and High Rock streets
7:51 p.m. An officer observed a black, Mercedes-Benz SUV traveling at excessive speed in a 30 m.p.h. zone in the area of High Street and High Rock Street. Radar showed the vehicle was traveling at over 50 m.p.h., and the officer made a traffic stop.
The driver, a 50 year-old man from Westwood, showed no reaction. The officer noticed signs of intoxication. Following field sobriety tests, the officer issued the driver a criminal citation for operating a motor vehicle under the influence of liquor and for speeding.
Tuesday, December 26th
Report of Stalking
4:32 p.m. An officer was dispatched to Rockland Trust bank on University Avenue on the report of stalking. Police learned that a man from Hull, Massachusetts had visited earlier that day to give a bank teller the gift of grapefruit and a white sweatshirt. The man has a documented history of stalking that goes back 20 years. The teller felt uncomfortable, and the man was asked to leave. He did so.
The employee asked the officer about a trespass notice and the officer advised the employee of her options. The officer waited at the bank through the employee’s shift, and watched over the teller until she was picked up by a family member.
Contractor Leaves Work Unfinished, Takes Remote Access to Home
8:33 a.m. A resident of Croft Regis Road reported being victim to a home repair scam where a contractor's installation of a new garage door was found to be suspicious and incomplete. The resident found a company online that repairs garage doors. A company representative came to the resident’s home to do the job, for which the resident paid $2,889 via Venmo.
After the transaction, the contractor left, and the complainant realized that the job was incomplete. There was no wall switch control installed. There was no safety sensor installed at the base of the door frame. Although the garage door came with three remote control pads for entry access, the homeowner could only find two of them. The homeowner feared that the contractor would use the missing remote control pad to access the house.
Thanks to Lieutenant Christopher Sheehy and the Westwood Police Department for contributing information for this article.
