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12-14-2025 8:49pm
Police Log: Arrest of Squatter, Holiday Decorations Vandalized, Report of Stalking
Darlene Cancell
Editor
The news described in this installment of 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 Michael DiLalla and police staff to Westwood Minute through written records and conversations. Occasionally, Westwood Minute may weave facts that it obtains from other sources into these stories.
Monday, December 8th
Dispute between Two Neighbors
7:18 a.m. A resident of Strafford Street complained that a neighbor’s pickup truck hit a trash bin, purposefully causing it to fall over and strike his 2024 Subaru Forester. The resident showed police video of the incident and a photo of the damage, but police determined that both were unclear as to causation. Police spoke to the neighbor who agreed that there are ongoing issues between the two residents. The neighbor told police that the complainant’s car was blocking the neighbor’s driveway, and the neighbor had to hit the trash bin in order to avoid striking the complainant’s car.
Sunday, December 7th
Suspicious Activity
Police responded to a report of a male party attempting to enter a car’s passenger side door. Upon arrival, no one was found.
Saturday, December 6th
Failing to Scan Items at Self-Checkout Register
1:50 p.m. Police responded to the Target store on University Avenue following a report of shoplifting. Store staff informed police that video footage showed the female suspect enter the store, select jewelry and lotion, and place them inside a bin inside her shopping cart. She also put bedding in her cart. At the self-checkout register, the suspect scanned only the larger items, and did not scan the lotion or jewelry that she had placed inside the storage container. The total stolen was over $400. The suspect, a 20-year-old resident of Hyde Park, was trespassed from the store and arrested.
Friday, December 5th
Arrest of Parking Lot Squatter
12:12 p.m. Police received a complaint from a business on Providence Highway regarding a recreational vehicle (RV) that had been parked in the business parking lot on a number of days. The business had asked the RV’s owner to leave, but received a hostile response. Police located the RV and discovered that there was a warrant for the arrest of the registered owner, who was wanted for shoplifting. Police made the arrest and the RV was towed off the property. The RV’s owner, a Stoughton resident in his 50s, was taken to Dedham District Court.
Wednesday, December 3rd
Vandal Cuts Cord to Lighted Holiday Lawn Figures
9:30 p.m. A resident of Briar Lane reported vandalism upon finding that someone had cut the electric cord to the resident’s yard décor – a lighted snowman. The resident believed the act to have occurred that same evening, sometime after 5:00 p.m. The resident noted that the electric cords to a lighted Mickey Mouse and lighted Minnie Mouse in the yard had also been vandalized in the same way, and that it had also occurred in the past to a Santa decoration. The resident, an electrician by trade, noted that the cords appeared to be cut with a cutting tool used especially for cutting electric wires. The property loss is estimated to total a few hundred dollars. In the future, the resident will set up a security camera.
Monday, December 1st
Resident Reports Being Stalked
1:06 p.m. A resident of School Street reported being stalked by a male acquaintance. The resident told police that the man drives by her residence, follows her to the grocery store, and stares at her. She provided police with his license plate. Police identified the man as a Westwood resident. The man denied knowing where School Street is. Police advised the man to avoid the area if he has no business there. He agreed.
Evidence Fails to Support Reported Assault
10:14 p.m. Police responded to the Budget Inn on Providence Highway on the report that a female had been struck by a male and was unable to leave the room. It was reported that the female feared for her safety and that the male had a firearm. Police arrived at the inn, and noted that they received responses from guests at each room door knocked at, except for one.
After extensive knocking and announcing police presence, but receiving no answer, police entered the room with a key and found an unconscious female on the bed. Police cleared the room and attended to the female who was extremely lethargic. She complained that a male had struck here on the head, and informed police that she had taken cocaine and been drinking earlier in the day. Police observed no red marks or visible injuries on her. Westwood Fire paramedics examined her and she was taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Needham for evaluation.
Through video, police identified a male who had left the female’s room around 9:45 p.m. Police contacted him at his home and he agreed to come to the police station immediately. At 2:30 a.m., the suspect and his wife arrived at the station. He informed police that he is a delivery driver, and after seeing the victim – an acquaintance of his – appearing drunk and disheveled, he offered to give her a ride to her sister’s house. She declined.
Police noted that the suspect’s story and the victim’s story have inconsistencies with each other. Other than the victim’s report, police found no evidence of a physical assault and no gun. The suspect was cooperative. No charges or citations were issued.
Sunday, November 30th
Missing Money
12:01 a.m. Police received a report from a resident of Fensview Drive who believed someone had stolen money from her home. She had hidden $1,200 in a designated spot in her house and it was no longer there.
Possibly Evidence of a Hit and Run
8:40 p.m. Westwood Police were alerted to a police bulletin regarding a hit and run that had occurred in Bellingham, which involved a red, four-door sedan. At an intersection of University Avenue in Norwood, a Westwood officer noticed a vehicle matching the description, which was damaged and was dragging something beneath it. Police pulled the vehicle over, and observed the front bumper of the car was dragging on the road. The female driver told police she was leaving her place of employment at Jake n JOES Sports Grille. At that point, Norwood Police arrived and took over the traffic stop.
Thanks to Lieutenant Michael DiLalla and Westwood Police Department for sharing information for this Westwood Minute article.
