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8-30-2021 10:13pm
Westwood Police Aid Dedham PD in Pursuit, Arrest of Car Thief
Darlene Cancell
Editor
Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay
The news described in Westwood Minute’s Police Log article is based on selected information from the Westwood Police Department’s daily log and information provided by Lieutenant Christopher Sheehy and police staff.
Monday, August 23, 2021
Westwood Police Aid Dedham PD in Pursuit, Arrest of Car Thief
8:08 p.m. Westwood Police were notified by Dedham police that a vehicle had been stolen from Legacy Place in Dedham. It was being followed by a Dedham detective. The car was a white, Volkswagen Jetta, which reportedly was left running prior to being stolen.
An Islington police cruiser picked up Dedham Police’s broadcast that the car was being pursued into Westwood, going south on Route 1, towards McDonalds. The Westwood Police cruiser joined the Dedham Police cruiser in pursuit of the Jetta.
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The Jetta exited Route 1 onto University Avenue in Norwood, and turned into the parking lot of the Skating Club of Boston. Westwood Police followed it there and ordered the driver to exit the vehicle. The driver, a juvenile from Brockton, complied. He was arrested by both Westwood and Dedham police officers.
Westwood Police notified Norwood Police, and he was taken into custody.
In a tweet from Dedham Police Department thanking Westwood Police for the assist, Dedham Police advised drivers to avoid leaving their vehicles running while unattended.
Thursday, August 26, 2021
Stolen Mailbox on Colburn Street
9:14 a.m. A police officer responded to a home on Colburn Street where a resident reported a stolen mailbox. The officer learned from the resident that sometime between August 25th and the time of the report on August 26th, the mailbox from the top of a post in front of the house had been stolen. The officer investigated the surrounding area and did not find it. The officer did not observe any other such damage in the residential area.
Texting while Driving
3:57 p.m. A Westwood police officer was in headed southbound on Route 1 in heavy traffic near the Prime Audi dealership when he saw a 2006 Lincoln pickup truck in traffic, next to him. The driver of the Lincoln was looking downward, and appeared to be texting or emailing on his cell phone.
No texting while driving road sign by Quoteinspector.com from Flickr
As traffic crawled along, the officer ran a check on the Lincoln’s license plate and learned that the car’s owner had an active warrant for his arrest from Quincy District Court. The officer conducted a traffic stop. The driver, a 38 year-old man from Weymouth, was indeed the car’s owner from whom a warrant had issued. He was cited for using a phone while operating a vehicle, arrested for the outstanding warrant, and taken to the police station. The Lincoln was towed.
Friday, August 27, 2021
Former Nordstrom Rack employee admits to return fraud
9:50 a.m. The district manager for asset protection at Nordstrom Rack in University Station contacted police to report theft by a former employee. In a recorded interview with Nordstrom Rack’s asset protection staff, the employee admitted to engaging in “return fraud.” The employee, a 23 year-old woman from Hyde Park, had been taking returns on merchandise and directing the refunded amount into her own personal account. The store determined that $4,680.71 had been stolen in this manner.
At the conclusion of Nordstrom Rack’s internal investigation that ended on Monday, August 23rd, Nordstrom Rack fired the employee. The store put her on notice that her appearance again in the store would constitute a trespass.
Image by gdakaska from Pixabay
On Wednesday, August 25th, Nordstrom Rack discovered that the employee had been responsible for theft of an additional $10,530, also obtained from returns. Nordstrom Rack passed its report and documentation to Westwood Police. A detective is following up.
In the very near future, Westwood Police will likely charge the former Nordstrom Rack employee with larceny, and encourage her to give restitution to the store.
Tracking app assists investigation of missing Apple watch
10:47 a.m. A Canton resident and member of Lifetime Fitness reported to Westwood Police that her Apple watch, worth about $500, had been taken from her gym locker on Wednesday, August 25th. Upon leaving the gym, realized she did not have her watch. She returned to report the missing watch to Lifetime Fitness personnel.
Using a tracking app, the woman tracked her missing watch to the vicinity of Spring Street in West Roxbury. The tracking app then showed it moving to Centre Street in West Roxbury. She went to look in the areas of West Roxbury where the watch was shown to be at rest. One location was a multi-family dwelling.
Police are investigating and considering the residents of the multi-family dwelling to be possible suspects.
Missing person
1:14 p.m. A manager of a business on Dartmouth Street called police to report that an employee had failed to show up for a week. She had not called in and her employer was unable to reach her. Police gathered personal information about the employee, a 63 year-old woman from Leominster.
Police contacted her daughter in Holbrook. The daughter was not aware of where her mother was and planned to contact the Holbrook Police to report her as missing.
Thanks to Lieutenant Christopher Sheehy and the Westwood Police Department for contributing information for this article.
