Police Log: Mysterious Voices at Night, Tracking a Thief with GPS, and More (Updated)

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Updated 3/26/2022 at 11:30 a.m. An incorrect reference to a "Kia" has been corrected to say "JMC" in the story titled, "Collision on High Street." The estimated time of theft has been corrected in the story titled, "Tracking a Thief with GPS."

The news described in Westwood Minute's Police Log article 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, March 14, 2022

Following too closely

5:15 p.m. A 2015 Honda driven by a Westwood woman and a 2016 Chrysler driven by another woman were headed west on High Street near Summer Street when the Honda rear-ended the Chrysler in heavy traffic. The Honda received heavy front-end damage, causing the air bag warning light to activate, but not deploy. The Chrysler received minor damage. Neither party was injured.

The Honda was towed to avoid a chance of the air bag deploying. The Chrysler was able to drive away from the scene. Police issued the driver of the Honda a written warning for following too closely.

Misuse of a handicap placard

6:32 p.m. A police officer conducting handicap placard enforcement in the University Station parking lot noticed a grey Lexus parked in handicap parking in front of Wegman’s. The officer noticed that the handicap placard inside the car was turned away from the street towards the vehicle’s interior, making it difficult to read. However, the officer was able to read the placard number which the officer discovered was registered to a male, whereas the vehicle was registered to a female.

The officer spoke to the female operator of the vehicle when she approached. She was a woman from Canton who claimed to be a personal care assistant to the person who owned the handicap placard. She was unable to show any documentation to prove the claim. The officer cited her with misuse of a handicap placard, which includes a $500 fine, and confiscated the placard which would be returned to the registry.

Tuesday, March 15, 2022

Right place, right time

4:11 p.m. A Westwood Police detective parked his unmarked vehicle in a public parking lot on Washington Street in Norwood. He planned to drop off court paperwork at a residence across the street. He noticed an argument between a man and a woman. As the argument escalated, the woman struck the man with a closed fist.

The detective called Norwood Police to request a cruiser. He approached the pair, displaying his badge and identifying himself as a member of the police. His approach served to interrupt the physical altercation which then became a conversation. When Norwood Police arrived, the detective finished his service of the paperwork to other, unrelated parties.

Arrest for failure to pay fines

5:18 p.m. A police officer conducting stationary traffic enforcement noticed a white Toyota RAV4 that was running a red light on Washington Street, as it turned onto East Street. Right turns on red lights are prohibited at that intersection.

The officer stopped the vehicle, which was driven by a 41 year-old man from Weymouth. During the stop, the officer learned that the man had a default warrant for his arrest from Plymouth District Court due to failure to pay fines. The officer placed the driver under arrest and cited him with failure to stop at a red light. He was transported to the Westwood Police Station where he was held, and then released, on $390 bail.

Mysterious voices

10:51 p.m. A resident of Farm Lane reported hearing what sounded like the voices of two people in her yard. She heard someone shout, “Run!” Officers responded to the area of the residence but did not see anyone on foot or otherwise.

Wednesday, March 16, 2022

Scream in the middle of the night

12:49 a.m. A resident of Grove Street reported hearing screaming in the resident’s yard. The resident was unsure whether it was from an animal. Police checked the yard and surrounding area and found nothing.

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Thursday, March 17, 2022

Dirty deed or honest mistake?

5:01 p.m. A resident of High Street complained of a neighbor taking the resident’s trash cans. Police went to the neighbor’s home to retrieve the trash cans. The neighbor told police it was a mistake.

Friday, March 18, 2022

Vandalism on East Street

11:25 a.m. Police responded to a private home on East Street where a resident reported vandalism to a vehicle. The resident reported that around 9:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 17th, his Ring doorbell activated and his dog barked, but he did not notice anything amiss. In the morning, however, he found three tires were slashed on the truck he uses in his landscaping business. The damage was to the side of the vehicle facing away from the Ring doorbell camera. Police checked the neighborhood. No abutters had cameras. The estimated value of the Michelin tires was $1,200.

Wallet stolen at Wegmans

2:06 p.m. A Canton resident reported having a wallet stolen while in Wegmans, between 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on March 16, 2022.

Unemployment Identity Fraud

2:57 p.m. Police were dispatched to a home on Phillips Brooks Road to take a report of identity fraud. The resident explained that he received a notice from the IRS in the mail, claiming that because he had not documented his unemployment payments of over $14,000, he owed back taxes on them. The resident told police that he had not filed an unemployment claim, and someone must have applied for unemployment using his information. He contacted the IRS and explained the fraud, and the IRS required that a police report be filed to verify his claim of fraud.

Collision on High Street

5:30 p.m. A 2015 Kia, driven by a man from Indiana, was travelling east on High Street when he observed a 2014 JMC, driven by a Westwood man, inch out of a house’s driveway on High Street. The Indiana man told police he honked at the JMC, but the JMC continued to pull into oncoming traffic, without yielding. The front right quarter of the Kia contacted the front left corner of the JMC. Neither driver was injured, and neither vehicle required a tow.

Saturday, March 19, 2022

Domestic assault arrest

8:28 a.m. Police made an arrest on Hartford Street for domestic assault. No further details are being provided to protect the privacy of those involved.

Tracking a thief with GPS

2:03 p.m. A resident of High Street told police that the resident had noticed the rear window of the resident’s vehicle was broken around 10:00 a.m., and a man’s wallet containing about $300 in cash had been taken from the vehicle. Also missing from the vehicle were personal papers and an iPhone charger. The resident had arrived home at 1:30 a.m. earlier that day, so the theft occurred sometime in the morning.

The resident had a GPS tracking device hidden in the wallet, and prior to contacting Westwood Police, the resident tracked the wallet’s location to 260 Dean Street in Norwood. Along with a family member, the Westwood resident began knocking on doors of the apartment complex at that address to locate the wallet. A Norwood resident of the apartment complex notified Norwood Police of the Westwood resident’s activity, and Norwood Police came out to assist. The wallet was unable to be located. During the time that the group was investigating the apartment complex, the signal from the tracking device stopped.

Thanks to Lieutenant Christopher Sheehy and the Westwood Police Department for contributing information for this article.

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