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Image by Westwood Minute/Darlene Wong Cancell.
1-24-2024 12:47am
Police Log: Distraction Aids Thief in Swiping Credit Card from Purse
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 22nd
Bumps in the Night
12:53 a.m. A resident of Hemlock Dr reported hearing someone in the resident’s garage. Police officers responded and found nothing amiss.
Vehicle Vandalized at Highland Glen Apartments
8:43 a.m. The owner of a new model Subaru Impreza reported vandalism to the vehicle on two separate occasions, while it was parked at the parking lot of Highland Glen Apartments. The owner, a resident of the apartment complex, had parked by Building 5 on Saturday, January 20th. The next day, the owner discovered that the driver’s side mirror had been struck, and a piece of the mirror casing had broken off. The owner also reported that three weeks earlier, the vehicle’s rear passenger fender was damaged. It appeared to have been struck by something while it was parked in the lot.
One Thing Leads to Another
10:04 a.m. An officer stopped a vehicle for a moving violation. The stop resulted in an arrest when the officer discovered that the driver had a warrant out for his arrest. The 40 year-old man from Mattapan was transported from the police station to Dedham District Court on the warrant about 1.5 hours later.
Sunday, January 21st
Unusual Behavior is Not a Crime
5:20 p.m. Police received a report that a suspicious, older, man with grey hair and blue shirt was rolling up clothing and throwing it on the ground on University Avenue. Police responded and determined that the 72 year-old from Orleans, Massachusetts was sorting through his own belongings and was not creating any problems or harm.
Driver Who Was Rear-Ended is Transported to Hospital for Possible Head Injury
6:53 p.m. Police responded to the Westwood Public Library parking lot to take the report of a two-car accident which had occurred on High Street in front of the library. A 2013 Hyundai driven by a woman from Walpole rear-ended a 2020 GMC driven by a woman from Malden, who had three passengers that included two children. The GMC had reportedly stopped due to traffic congestion ahead of it. A child was crying in a safety seat in the GMC. A check by Westwood Fire paramedics determined that the child was unharmed. However, the driver of the GMC was transported to a hospital for a possible head injury. The driver of the Hyundai was cited for following too closely.
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Saturday, January 20th
Too Close for Comfort
2:47 p.m. A resident of Hyde Park reported damage to her blue, Toyota Camry, by a shopper with a shopping cart. The complainant informed police that while she sat in her car in the parking lot, a woman pushed a cart by, scratching the passenger side of the Camry. After first apologizing, the woman then denied damaging the vehicle. The investigating officer found a minor scratch to the passenger door.
Good Time for Playing Hockey
11:44 p.m. A caller reported hearing a loud group of people in the distance, in the vicinity of Abbey Road and Winter Street. Cruisers responded to the area and reported that the noise may have come from a group playing hockey on an outdoor ice rink. Police determined that the noise from the group was not unreasonable for the time of day.
Friday, January 19th
Lucky Break
5:07 p.m. An officer was conducting a property check of a local business on Providence Highway when the officer noticed a grey Kia SUV with a New Jersey license plate failed to signal when it pulled out of a parking lot and onto Route 1. Upon stopping the Kia, the officer learned that it was a rental, and that the driver had an outstanding warrant for his arrest from Brighton District Court. The 36 year-old man from West Roxbury was cited for a marked lanes violation. He was released on bail on personal recognizance.
Dropping Credit Score Alerts Resident to Fraud
5:46 p.m. A resident of High Street reported that a T-Mobile cellular account had been fraudulently opened by someone who used his social security number. The fraud was discovered when the resident noticed his credit score dropping. He learned about an unpaid balance on a T-Mobile account which he had not opened.
Conversing Too Loud
10:48 p.m. A caller reported three individual standing in the middle of Forbes Road, loudly talking, such that their voices awoke the resident. The resident was concerned about the late night activity. Police responded to the area but did not find anyone on foot.
Thursday, January 18th
Icy Patch Causes Road Accident
8:18 a.m. At the East Street rotary, a 2023 Kia driven by a woman from Dorchester struck a patch of ice on the road, causing it to turn 90 degrees to the left and strike the cement curb on the inner ring of the rotary. No injuries were reported. The vehicle was able to drive away.
Westwood Business Accuses Maryland Resident of Fraud
10:43 a.m. An employee of SimpleHome, a computer and electronics manufacturing business on University Avenue, reported credit card fraud from a customer. The business reportedly completed a job for a customer who, after receiving the product/services, initiated a credit card charge dispute. The employee reported that products and/or services totaling about $11,000 were billed to the customer, but after the products were delivered, the customer refused to pay. The customer is located in Frederick, Maryland.
Distraction Aids Thief in Swiping Credit Card from Purse
1:16 p.m. A woman from Taunton complained to police of a theft of her credit card while she was shopping in Wegmans supermarket on University Avenue. The woman reported that she placed a purse in her shopping cart and walked away. She was distracted by a tall man who asked her a question about canned vegetables. While they conversed, she turned and saw another man with a hand on her purse.
She reported the incident to the store’s management. Upon checking her purse, she did not immediately find anything missing. However, later on, she discovered that a single credit card was missing from her wallet. In addition, she was alerted to fraudulent charges of $850 on the card that were attempted at the Apple store in Dedham around 4:00 p.m. that afternoon. The woman cancelled her credit card and was able to have the charge erased.
Wednesday, January 17th
Early Arriving Worker Mistaken for Intruder
4:56 a.m. Police received a report from security for the Acura dealership on Providence Highway that an intruder had entered a vehicle that was parked between the nearby Audi and Porsche dealerships. Police responded and determined that the individual was an employee of one of the dealerships.
Store Video Captures Shoplifting
3:23 p.m. Asset protection staff of Wegmans supermarket on University Avenue alerted police to thefts observed on security camera. There were three suspects, at least some of whom were believed to have participated in a theft late last year. Store video showed that two suspects were males who were wearing dark clothes and one of them was wearing a surgical mask. The third suspect was a female who was wearing a black scarf and white jacket. One of the males was observed moving a wallet from a shopper’s purse that was placed in her cart, when she momentarily turned away. The victim of the theft reported five fraudulent charges on her credit card. Over $2,000 was spent at Westwood’s Target and over $1,000 was spent at the Apple store in Dedham.
Thanks to Lieutenant Christopher Sheehy and the Westwood Police Department for contributing information for this article.
