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Image by Westwood Minute/Darlene Wong Cancell.
5-08-2024 12:17am
Police Log: Card Skimmer Found in Westwood Roche Bros. and Other Stories
Darlene Cancell
Editor
The news described in Westwood Minute's weekly Police Log article series is primarily based on selected incidents from the Westwood Police Department's daily log, and information provided by Lieutenant Christopher Sheehy and police staff through written records and conversations. Occasionally, Westwood Minute may weave a few facts that it obtains from other sources into these stories.
Monday, May 6th
Arrest of Shoplifting Suspect Who Fails to Show Receipt
7:45 a.m. Police received a call from Wegman’s asset protection staff regarding a woman who was believed to have a history of shoplifting. When she left the store with her cart to unload items worth over $124 into her vehicle, an officer approached and asked for her receipt. She was unable to provide one. The officer arrested the 68 year-old Norwood resident or shoplifting. She received a notice of trespass from Wegmans and police charged her with shoplifting by asportation, second offense.
Sunday, May 5th
Wellbeing Check after Argument
A caller reported that a male and female were arguing inside a white Lexus in the vicinity of Xaverian High School on Clapboardtree Street, and that the female had attempted to exit the vehicle a number of times. Police traced the license plate to a white Lexus from Norton, Massachusetts. Westwood Police contacted Norton Police to conduct a wellbeing check for the registered owner.
Friday, May 3rd
Bicycle Stolen from Martha Jones School
8:59 p.m. An officer was dispatched to a residence on Martha Jones Road to take a report of a stolen bike. A family member reportedly had ridden a bike to the Martha Jones School around 5:00 p.m. and left the bicycle and helmet outside the school building. Upon leaving the school grounds around 8:00 p.m., however, the bike was missing. An officer located the child’s helmet, but not the bike. The bicycle is navy blue with an estimated value of $700-$800.
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Thursday, May 2nd
Suspicious Workers Are from Eversource
12:48 p.m. A caller reported that two suspicious men were seen in a residential yard on Pond Street around 10:00 a.m. They claimed to be workers from Eversource, looking for a gas leak. The claim turned out to be true.
Distraction Aids Thief in Stealing Wallet
3:48 p.m. A resident of Dedham reported having her wallet stolen while she was shopping at the Home Goods store on University Avenue. She remembered that while in the store, a larger woman asked for help reading the greeting cards, as the woman claimed not to be fluent in English. At the time, the complainant’s purse was placed in the top seat of her shopping cart. The complainant believes the questioning woman was a planned distraction.
The complainant is missing her wallet which contained her driver’s license, credit cards, and $130 in cash. While speaking with police, the complainant received an email from Mastercard indicating one of her credit cards was used at the Apple store in Dedham for a $848 transaction. It was declined. The card was canceled, and police advised the complainant to cancel her other credit cards and to report further suspicious activity.
Risky Wheelies
3:52 p.m. A caller informed police that a teenager was riding a bicycle on Providence Highway Route 1, between lanes of traffic and doing wheelies. The teen was not located.
Foggy Windshield and Rain Contribute to Rear-End Accident
7:21 p.m. While travelling south on Washington Street, a 2007 Volkswagen driven by a woman from Westwood rear-ended a 2018 Honda driven by a woman from Walpole, after the Honda stopped for a red light. The Honda’s driver was transported to Beth Israel Deaconess Needham for possible injuries.
The driver of the trailing vehicle told police that she could not see because of rain and a foggy windshield. The officer noticed that the driver’s climate control was directed to heat the floor of her vehicle. He switched its direction to the front window to help it defog. The officer cited the Westwood resident with failure to stop.
Late Night Munchies
11:59 p.m. A caller from Alcott Lane reported suspicious activity when an individual approached the residence and dropped off an open package. An investigation revealed that the individual was likely a food delivery driver dropping off food.
Tuesday, April 30th
Opposite of Beautification
6:11 p.m. Police received a complaint that a youth was walking on Washington Street, destroying all the flowers. Police responded to the area, but the suspect was not to found.
An Unknown Contact
9:34 p.m. A resident complained that the resident’s vehicle was struck while parked at Westwood High School. The resident’s vehicle was reportedly parked near the Westwood Recreation swimming pool lobby while the resident waited to pick up a family member. The resident told police that a black SUV pulled into the parking spot to the right of the complainant’s parked vehicle, and when its driver exited, the black SUV’s door struck the passenger door of the complainant’s car.
The exiting driver reportedly met the eyes of complainant, but spoke no words and headed into the building. The complainant took a photo of the SUV’s license plate, which Westwood Police traced to a Westwood resident.
An officer contacted the black SUV’s driver, who appeared to be unaware of the contact between the vehicles.
Monday, April 29th
Shoplifting for Beauty
1:49 p.m. Ulta Beauty on University Avenue reported a shoplifting that occurred two days prior. A female suspect was observed entering the store and placing lip products, shampoo, and fragrances inside a bag and leaving without paying. The merchandise was worth $641. Police have obtained a photo of the individual.
Card Skimmer Discovered at Westwood Roche Bros.
1:36 p.m. A credit card skimmer was discovered on a cash register’s pin pad at Roche Bros. on Washington Street. A store manager reported that on Wednesday, April 24, two men entered the store wearing surgical masks. Both appeared to be in their late 30s to early 40s and around 5’10’’ in height. One man wore a grey bucket hat with orange flannel shirt and a vest. The other man wore a blue baseball cap and black pullover. When they checked out at a register, it appears one distracted the cashier while the other attached the skimmer to the pin pad. The attachment took less than 30 seconds. A store manager was able to remove the skimmer a short time later on the same day. Various news outlets have also reported credit card skimmers being found at the grocery store’s locations in Wellesley, Needham, West Roxbury, Natick, Watertown, Boston’s Downtown Crossing, Sudbury, and Bridgewater. Police are investigating.
Vehicle Strikes Light Pole
2:06 p.m. A light pole was damaged near the intersection of University Avenue and Station Drive when a 2022 Hyundai driven by a man from Scituate struck the pole after hitting the curb. The driver reportedly swerved in and out of traffic before causing heavy front end damage to his car and the pole. Westwood Fire paramedics transported the man to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital Needham. Police cited the man with a marked lanes violation. There was no evidence of intoxication.
Thanks to Lieutenant Christopher Sheehy and the Westwood Police Department for contributing information for this Westwood Minute article.
Updated 5/8/2024 at 11:33 a.m.
