Belmont Police Log, June 7-22: Car wreck and fire on Newton Street, Engagement ring never arrives, bicycle theft and more
The following are excerpts from the Belmont Police log as made available by the Belmont Police Department. The log is public and available for review. All persons are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law.
Wednesday, June 7
10 a.m.: A Foster Road resident reported a bicycle theft. His brother from North Carolina put his bike rack and bicycle in the garage (which has no door) the previous night. This morning when they went into the garage, the bicycle, a Trek Marlin Gen 2 bike, black, gray and teal, is valued at $850. Also missing was the bicycle’s headlamp, valued at $100. The bicycle were located in front of a home on June 18 at a home on Skahan Road. The headlamp was still missing. The owner of the home said the bicycle was left on her walkway and her landscapers put it up against her house. She is unsure where the bike came from.
1:42 p.m.: A Pleasant Street resident reported stolen signs. His Black Lives Matter and Stop Asian Hate signs were taken from his front yard some time between last night and today. He paid $40 for the Stop Asian Hate sign.
4:47 p.m.: The property manager of Hill Road apartments informed officers that some time last night or early that morning, an unknown individual gained entry into the lobby and took several tenant’s packages. The packages are usually placed in the front lobby for tenants to retrieve. The packages were torn apart and moved to a nearby staircase. Valuable items were taken from them. Security footage will be shared with the police department. A resident who was a victim said she received notification on June 4th that her package was delivered. It was an infrared light valued at $100. The property manager will inform residents of the theft and ask victims to contact the Belmont Police.
9:21 p.m.: A Channing Road resident reported a stolen bicycle. She noticed the garage was opened. She was not concerned at first because she thought her husband opened it. However, she noticed an orange Specialized bicycle laying on the front lawn near the sidewalk. She thought it was her son’s bicycle because it is the same color. Later that day, she realized her husband’s bicycle was no longer in the garage. She believes an unknown individual was riding by, went in to the garage and left the bike they were riding behind. The bike is and electric black Ridge Rider Pedego valued at $3,830.
Friday, June 9
11:07 p.m.: Officers filed a criminal complaint against a Belmont man for malicious damage to a motor vehicle.
Sunday, June 11
10:13 a.m.: A South Cottage Road resident reported package theft. An envelope he received was opened and empty. It was supposed to be an item he ordered from eBay, a Yugioh CYAC-EN100 Visas Starfrost Starlight rare first edition LP valued at $185. He has been corresponding with eBay to rectify this situation and was instructed to file a police report.
Monday, June 12
6:06 p.m.: Belmont Variety on Belmont Street reported shoplifting. An employee informed them a black male, approximately 16, wearing a black sweatshirt and a black hat entered the store and asked the price of the Zippo lighters displayed on the counter. He then grabbed on and the clipper light and quickly exited the store. She believes he lives nearby and is unsure exactly where. She will be emailing officers video footage of the larceny. He was wearing blue jeans, a red sweatshirt, black vest and head covering. The lighter is valued at $30 and the clipper is valued at $5.
Tuesday, June 13
11:23 a.m.: A Springfield resident reported someone attempted to break into his 2013 Toyota while it was parked at McLean Hospital at 8 p.m. on June 8th. When he returned to it today, he observed the rear driver’s side window was smashed. The vehicle was locked when he parked it there. It did not appear anyone entered the vehicle or that anything was missing.
1:42 p.m.: A Sycamore Street resident reported larceny of a package. She ordered an Apple MacBook Pro online and was expecting it to be delivered this morning. She stayed home from work that day to wait for the package to be delivered. She received confirmation from FedEx that her package was delivered at 11:35 a.m. with a photo receipt. She opened to front door after she got the confirmation and the package wasn’t there. She searched the immediate area and neighbor’s front porches but could not find the package. She contacted FedEx and Apple to make them aware of the incident. The MacBook was valued at $1,400.
5:47 p.m.: An Acorn Park Drive resident reported a stolen bicycle. His black and red Trek bicycle valued at $340 was missing from the garage. It was inside the bicycle room, unlocked, hanging on the wall hanger. He last saw it on April 22 at 6 p.m. He noticed it was missing April 23 but has been too busy to report it. There are no doors to the garage.
Wednesday, June 14
11:18 a.m.: A Thayer Street resident reported theft of a package. He purchased an engagement ring valued at $3,100 on June 6th. He purchased it from Brilliant Earth. They shipped the ring on June 13th via FedEx. He received confirmation today that the ring would be delivered. He left his doors open and waited for the delivery. He received a notification it was delivered and signed for by S. Lewis at 10:10 a.m. However, the FedEx vehicle never came.
12:50 p.m.: The owner of CambridgeWear in Belmont Center reported larceny. She noticed an uptick in merchandise being stolen from her store over the last month. At least six items she knows of have been taken. She noticed an older Asian woman in her 70s with black and white hair, accompanied by a younger, Asian female, have been inside the store with their own shopping bags, seeming to text back and forth on the phone. When they leave, she realizes merchandise is missing. She recently observed the older, Asian woman place a pair of pants into a bag. She asked the woman if she was interested in buying them and she took them out of the bag and said she wasn’t interested in buying them. She said she hasn’t called sooner because she wasn’t sure what could be done. She will be closing her store permanently the end of August.
Friday, June 16
3:16 p.m.: Collision with injuries on Newton Street between a 2018 Subaru operated by a Watertown woman, and a 2009 Toyota operated by a Belmont woman. The Subaru landed on top of the Toyota. The operator of the Subaru was bleeding heavily from her hand. Officers tended to her injuries while waiting for Belmont Fire to respond. The operator of the Subaru said she was looking for a parking spot and is unsure what happened. The operator of the Toyota said she parked her vehicle and then felt an impact and then the Subaru was on top of her car. She was unable to get out of her driver’s side door. She was uninjured. The Subaru was removed and towed from the scene by Waltham Auto. There was major damage to both motor vehicles. The Toyota was also towed from the scene by AAA. The operator of the Subaru was transported to Mount Auburn Hospital by Belmont Fire and was issued a citation for unsafe operation of a motor vehicle.
3:44 p.m.: Officers responded to a house fire on Newton Street. Fire was coming from the second floor, street facing windows. Belmont Fire was still on the scene of the car accident. A second-floor resident was outside the building and left shortly to take his cat to the animal hospital who was rescued by Belmont Fire. The first-floor resident arrived on scene shortly after. It appears no one was home when the fire happened. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Sunday, June 18
10:19 p.m.: A Manchester-by-the-Sea resident reported missing property. At 4:20 p.m. today, he and his wife were visiting a family member at McLean Hospital. When they went out to dinner at 7 p.m., his wife realized her phone was missing. Find my Phone tracked it to the large parking lot at McLean. They were not able to locate it and believe it was left outside on a bench. The iPhone was in a case which contained, a driver’s license, TSA Global Entry pass, JetBlue Mastercard and a Chase Visa card and a corporate credit card. Several charges were discovered on the JetBlue credit card including a charge on June 18th for $105.95 at Star Market, $13.20 and $7.65 at Belmont Car Care and two charges of $105.95 at CVS in Cambridge. The Chase Visa credit card had a charge for $80.95 at Star Market and at CVS in Cambridge for $105.95. Both credit cards were cancelled. They attempted to track the phone again but it was turned off.
Monday, June 19
3:22 p.m.: A Hill Road resident reported a break-in to a storage unit. He went to the shared basement area where the storage units are located and observed the lock on his unit was missing. He also noticed the knuckle where the padlock attaches were missing. When he opened the door, he observed the padlock and knuckle placed on top of a box. He found the suitcase which belonged to his parents, was cut open at the top. He is unsure what was taken. It’s been four months since he was last inside the storage unit. His parents will be visiting in July and will determine if anything was taken.
Tuesday, June 20
9:10 a.m.: A Slade Street resident reported larceny of a bicycle. Her son was playing at Winn Brook Playground from noon to 5 p.m. He hid his bicycle behind a bush near the basketball court because he forgot his lock. When he returned after playing it was gone. It is a green Kink Curb BMX bicycle valued at $300.
June 21
5:09 p.m.: A Bow Road resident reported suspicious activity. A man was driving a red pick-up truck, going door to door, asking if he could steam clean residents’ driveways. The plates were Canadian. Officers observed him talking to a resident on Madison Street. They asked him for a driver’s license and he presented one from the United Kingdom. He was distributing flyers from the company, Master Masonry and Paving. Officers asked if he registered with the town to solicit and he said he did not and was unaware he needed to. He was informed he would need to register with the town before soliciting door to door. Officers asked him where he was staying and he said Allston but would not give an address. The resident he was speaking to said the man was trying to sell him a service he did not want. Officers told him it was likely a scam.
9:40 p.m.: Officers were surveying the CVS parking lot on Trapelo Road due to recent reports of youths breaking bottles. Three juveniles told officers that individuals with ski masks exited their vehicle on Trapelo Road and pushed their friend onto the ground. They then threw their friend’s Airpods and threw it onto the roof of CVS. They believe the individuals were inside the store. Officers spoke to the juvenile who was pushed and he gave a description of three individuals with ski masks, two were dark-skinned and the other was light-skinned, all wearing Nike Tech ski masks. He was hoping to get his Airpods back. Officers went inside the CVS and asked the manger if she witnessed anyone wearing ski masks. She said she saw one of the individuals enter the store and go to the refrigerated section. They opened one of the doors and then left the store with an item. They are unsure what was stolen. She saw them enter a vehicle with no headlights on and speed off. Officers looked at the CVS surveillance video and saw the individuals described but were unable to get the vehicle footage. Officers told the juvenile they were unable to access the roof but to follow up the next day and they should be able to retrieve the Airpods that were thrown onto the roof. The school resource officer also followed up with the juvenile and his parents.
Thursday, June 22
10:48 a.m.: A Newton resident reported her husband received a letter in the mail last month from the city of Cambridge that his construction supervisor license was being used fraudulently to pull permits. After further investigation it was discovered the license was also being used in Brookline, Weston and Belmont. Zhendong Construction is the company that falsely used her husband’s license. While investigating, officers received a call from the Office of Community Development informing them the same person was attempting to pull another permit. Officers immediately went to the office to speak to the individual. They explained why they were there. He said he would not answer any questions without an attorney present. Officers informed him they would be investigating this incident and would let them know if charges will be filed.
12:49 p.m.: A 91-year-old Trapelo Road resident reported fraud. She received a phone call from what sounded like a male party saying they worked for Publisher’s Clearing House. The man on the phone said she won $1 million and to receive the money she needed to provide her bank account number, routing number and social security number. He also said she had to wait until the deposit showed up on her next bank statement and should not call the bank between now and then or she would lose the money. After giving her information she became suspicious and contacted the police. Due to her age and mobility issues, officers responded to her bank, Watertown Savings Bank, and informed the branch manager of how her account was compromised. They also assisted her with getting in touch with Waltham Social Security office. She hasn’t suffered any financial losses at this time. She was also advised to contact her credit card companies and keep an eye on her credit score.
6:27 p.m.: A Dartmouth Street resident in her 70s reported fraud. She observed a message on a computer. It was locked down and she had to call a number that started with “888” to unlock it. She called the number and was eventually convinced to transfer $20,000 to a Bitcoin machine. She believes the people who called were representatives of her bank, Cambridge Trust. She was instructed to drive to the bank branch in Harvard Square to withdraw $20,000 and stayed on the telephone with the person on the phone who had a French-Canadian accent. She then went to a gas station in Brookline where she was ordered to insert the money into a Bitcoin machine. However, the machine was unable to read her drivers’ license. A detective from Brookline Police happened to be in the gas station at the same time and observed what was happening. She told her she was being scammed and to hang up the phone. He insisted on helping her to get a cab to return her money to Cambridge Trust. Cambridge Trust changed her bank account and issued her a new debit card. She will report the incident to the Social Security office and was instructed to set up fraud alerts with the credit bureaus. She also will make sure no one has remote access to her laptop by taking it to Geek Squad.
Between June 2-22, 2023, Belmont police responded to 10 domestic incidents, two domestic arrests, one for assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and the other for domestic assault and battery. They also responded to 12 mental health calls between June 2-22, 2023.