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5-18-2026 12:37am
Police Log: Shoplifting Arrest, Pursuit of Reckless Teen Driver, and Donation Bin Theft Suspect Arrested in RI
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 Detective Lieutenant Christopher Aylward and police staff to Westwood Minute through written records and conversations. Occasionally, Westwood Minute may incorporate facts that it obtains from other sources into these stories.
Saturday, May 9
Car for Sale?
3:02 p.m. Police received a call from a 19-year-old female who, while at home alone on Nahatan Street, reported that a person had come knocking on her door. Upon investigation, police learned that a few days prior, someone had left a note at the residence inquiring whether an older Chevrolet SUV parked on the property was for sale. Police located the individual who had left the note, and confirmed that this same individual had returned to the house and knocked on the door to inquire about the SUV.
Friday, May 8
Freerider
2:50 p.m. Staff at Audi Westwood informed police that the business was receiving E-ZPass bills for travel in New Jersey and Delaware, linked to a vehicle which Audi Westwood had sold to a New Jersey dealership. The Massachusetts registration for the vehicle had been cancelled, but apparently, its Massachusetts plates had not been removed, and E-ZPass bills were being sent to the vehicle’s last known Massachusetts address.
Thursday, May 7
Suspect in Westwood Donation Bin Thefts Arrested in Rhode Island
1:15 a.m. Law enforcement in Rhode Island informed Westwood Police that they had arrested an individual for offenses there who was also discovered to have a warrant for his arrest from Westwood. The suspect is believed to have broken into a donation bin at First Baptist Church in 2022.
Dine and Dash
1:25 p.m. Police responded to a disturbance at the Chipotle eatery on University Avenue. An employee and a customer were arguing after the customer allegedly walked out of the eatery without paying. Police deescalated the situation. The customer, a resident of Canton, was trespassed from the store.
Wednesday, May 6
Police Arrest Shoplifting Suspect Believed to Have Committed Theft on 22 Other Occasions
2:12 p.m. Police received a call from the Target store on University Avenue regarding a shoplifting in progress. A female was observed concealing items in a bag and switching price tags on water bottles. Police responding to the scene intercepted the suspect who had left the store and was in her car. After recovering stolen merchandise worth $35, police arrested the Milton resident and charged her with one count of shoplifting.
Following the suspect’s apprehension, store staff alleged that on 22 separate occasions, she had been observed switching labels on products and stealing from Target stores in other locations outside of Westwood.
One Thing Leads to Another
8:13 p.m. Police made a traffic stop in the area of Providence Highway and Southwest Park for an expired inspection sticker and discovered that the driver had no driver’s license. The driver, a Newton resident, provided police with a Brazilian passport as identification. The driver was arrested for unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.
Relationship Problems
10:45 p.m. Police responded to Lowder Brook Drive for a report of a disturbance and discovered two individuals in their late teens – a boyfriend and girlfriend - having a verbal argument. One individual had exited the car, walked away, and returned. Police mediated the situation, separated the parties, and gave the girlfriend a courtesy ride home to her Westwood residence. The boyfriend, a Needham resident, departed in his vehicle.
Tuesday, May 5
Unhoused in Westwood
12:26 p.m. A resident of Canton Street reported observing a homeless man on the trails near the resident’s home. Police informed the resident that the man has been known by Westwood Police for years, and has been offered services and assistance, but he has declined them. Police note that the man appears well fed and well-kept. Police advised the resident that the man is not known to be involved in any criminal activity and is not considered a safety risk.
Unlicensed Teenage Driver Arrested after Three-Vehicle Collision
12:38 p.m. Police responded to Thurston Middle School ,where a 19 year-old unlicensed driver from Norwood reportedly pulled into the schools parking lot from High Street at a high rate of speed, and hit a parked car that was occupied by a mother and her four-year-old child. The front end of the teenager’s Subaru hit the front passenger side of the Range Rover, and pushed the Range Rover into another parked vehicle that was unoccupied. No injuries were reported. Both the Subaru and the Range Rover required towing. The Norwood resident was arrested for unlicensed operation and also charged with negligent operation of a motor vehicle.
Hit-and-Run after Vehicle Strikes Bike in Crosswalk
2:37 p.m. Police received a report of a hit-and-run, describing a vehicle leaving a parking spot near Dunkin’ on High Street which hit the rear wheel of the bicycle that a juvenile was walking across the street, within a crosswalk. The vehicle left the scene. The juvenile was not injured.
Monday, May 4
Vandalism at County Club
6:17 a.m. A groundskeeper at the Dedham Country and Polo Club reported that a vandal had left tire tracks on one of the fairways. Police responded and discovered evidence of a vehicle accessing the greens alongside the property’s Summer Street entrance, and driving in circles on the adjacent grass. Large and deep ruts in the ground were discovered across a wide area of the immediate vicinity.
Dedham Resident Attempts to License Dogs in Westwood
2:07 p.m. The Town Clerk’s Office reported receiving a registration request for three pit bulls at a Nancy Drive address which staff knew to be the address of an unoccupied property. It was discovered that previous rental occupants of the Westwood address had allowed a Dedham resident to register the dogs there. The dogs were not permitted to be registered in Dedham. The Dedham resident’s application for Westwood registration was rejected.
Tuesday, April 28
High-Speed Pursuit of Reckless Teenage Driver Results in Arrest after Vehicle Crashes
5:49 p.m. Police observed a speeding vehicle on Gay Street, and clocked it traveling 55-60 m.p.h. in a 25 m.p.h. zone. The vehicle did not slow or stop after police activated cruiser lights. When police turned on sirens, the vehicle continued traveling along the middle of the road, causing oncoming traffic to swerve to avoid it.
Police initiated a pursuit of the vehicle, which was estimated to now be traveling at around 70 m.p.h. At the end of Gay Street, police called off the high-speed pursuit, but continued to follow the vehicle as it turned left from Gay Street onto Washington Street and headed into Dedham. Westwood Police caught up to the vehicle when it crashed into another car on Washington Street in Dedham, just over the Westwood town line.
The driver, an 18-year-old from Walpole, was discovered to be driving on a suspended license. She was booked by Dedham Police for the crash and arrested by Westwood Police for negligent operation of a motor vehicle, operating a motor vehicle on a suspended license, failure to stop for police, speeding, and marked lanes violations.
Thanks to Detective Lieutenant Christopher Aylward and Westwood Police Department for sharing information for this Westwood Minute article.
