Belmont Police Log, March 7-13: Two trees fell on vehicles, Claflin Street parking lot break-in, disturbance at Dunkin Donuts, check fraud 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.

Friday, March 7

12:45 p.m.: Walnut Street resident reported a tree fell on her vehicle due to the high wind. The tree came from the house behind her on Hull Street. Landlords of both properties involved have been made aware of the incident.

4:37 p.m.: Motor vehicle broken into in the Claflin Street parking lot. The owner of a 2011 Ford went into CVS. When she returned, she discovered items from her vehicle were stolen, including prescription sunglasses worth $200, a call cell phone mount worth $50, a cell phone cord worth $15, a Hill Estate’s parking pass, restaurant menus, mints, funeral card and a liner to change holder in front of the shifter. There were no signs of forced entry. Her vehicle was not locked.

Saturday, March 8

6:18 p.m.: A Marsh Street resident reported a fallen tree onto a vehicle in the driveway causing damage to the vehicle.

Monday, March 10

4 p.m.: Disturbance at Dunkin Donuts on Pleasant Street. A man was yelling at a woman behind the counter, later identified as his wife. A Belmont Police officer witnessed the incident and asked him to lower his voice. The man became very agitated and began arguing with the officer. The woman said he was asking her for money and when she told him she didn’t have any cash, he began to yell at her. Witnesses at the Dunkin Donuts were frightened by the man because he was shouting so loud. An employee also said they feared he was going to assault his wife. The man said officers had no right to tell him he couldn’t talk to his wife. The officers explained they were not telling him he couldn’t speak to her but were asking him to do so in a civil manner. The woman was advised to call if he returned and caused another scene.

5:47 p.m.: A Belmont resident reported finding scratches on her home’s back door and frame.

6:30 p.m.: A Belmont resident reported a hit and run. His car was hit and damaged while he was parked in the Star Market parking lot on Trapelo Road from 2:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. There was moderate damage to the rear driver side of the vehicle behind the rear tire and below the rear taillight. He will report it to his insurance company and file a claim for damages.

Tuesday, March 11

4:27 p.m.: A Hill Road resident reported damage to the rear window of his motor vehicle. The vehicle was parked in the parking lot outside 55 Hill Road. He was informed the vehicle was damaged by another resident of the apartment complex at 10 a.m. A maintenance employee from Hill Estates said there is a camera located outside the side entrance of 55 Hill Road that was aimed directly at the vehicle. The resident was advised not to operate the vehicle with the damaged window.

Wednesday, March 12

8:14 a.m.: Motor vehicle crash near the intersection of Waverley Street and Thomas Street between a 2014 Honda operated by a Belmont man and a 2005 Honda operated by a Belmont woman. The Belmont woman said she did not see the other vehicle when she was backing out of her driveway because it was in her blind spot was issued a citation for failure to yield to/with approaching motor vehicle.

10:13 a.m.: A Belmont resident reported fraud. Her husband has had issues with his social security number in the past. One time she received a call that her husband was deceased, and the social security checks would no longer be sent. However, her husband is alive. She spent hours to prove he was and finally resolved the issue. She recently learned the hospital where her husband was having treatment had him living at a different address in Whitman, which led her to suspect there was an issue with the social security number. She called the Whitman police department to see if someone by her husband’s name was living at the address and learned the house was vacant. She was advised to continue working with the Social Security Administration to inform them of the latest incident.

11:48 a.m.: A Waltham resident reported fraud. On Feb. 23, he placed three checks in a mailbox at the Waverley Square Post Office on Trapelo Road. The checks were made out to Visa for $1,600, City of Waltham for $56 and Boston Globe for $126. On March 4, he noticed $16,170.12 missing from his account. He requested to have his bank account closed and notified the Bank of America fraud department.

8:38 p.m.: A Belmont resident reported concern about his neighbor’s tree. He is concerned the tree poses a danger because it is cracked. He has communicated with the homeowner who said she will have the tree assessed. However, the tree is still standing, and he is concerned it will fall. He was advised to reach out to the Department of Public Works and the tree warden regarding this matter.

Thursday, March 13

12:215 p.m.: Suspicious activity involving an Amazon driver on Common Street. A woman ordered food to be delivered by Amazon. In the morning, she was awakened by the sound of someone trying to open the locked door of the apartment from the hallway. When she opened the door, the food delivery was there, and she heard an unknown person down the hall getting into the elevator. She brought the food in and got an alert on her mobile phone that it was delivered. She complained to Amazon who said they would contact the employee’s supervisor for possible disciplinary action. No entry was gained and there were no signs of attempted entry.

1:43 p.m.: A Belmont resident reported ongoing harassment issues since January 2024 she feels are racially motivated. Twenty-four calls were received by the Belmont Police from the resident requesting an officer, or to report a neighbor dispute or harassment dating back to Aug. 20, 2024. On March 10, she and her husband were cleaning debris from the yard. They brought the bags to the street to get picked up. As they were walking back up the driveway, the neighbor was giving her a dirty look and made a fist at her holding it close to his rib cage. She believes this is an insult. She is seeking a harassment prevention order against him and was provided contact information for Cambridge District Court.

5:10 p.m.: A Pond Street resident reported a hit and run. His vehicle was struck, and an anonymous letter was in her mailbox from someone who said they were a neighbor that witnessed the crash the evening of March 12. The car was described as a dark grey and a registration number was provided. The registration provided did not come back to a vehicle resembling the description. A neighbor will review the camera footage and email the police a copy of the recording of the incident if they can find it.

3:54 p.m.: Complaint about male teens throwing ball bearings from a motor vehicle at other vehicles and people at Moozy’s on Trapelo Road. The reporting party took a photo of the teens and their vehicle, a gray Subaru and provide the registration number. She also knew who the boys were and gave officers their names. The offending vehicle could not be found, but officers knocked on the door of the home where the vehicle is registered. Officers went to the address of the other person identified and met with the boy and his mother. He admitted he was throwing jellybeans at vehicles and people on the sidewalk. Officers advised the mother of resources to assist with his behavior.

6:40 p.m.: A Belmont resident agreed to purchase a cat from an online breeder and paid $800 to a Venmo account. She was informed the cat was coming from Sarasota, Florida and should arrive March 12. When the cat didn’t show up, she called the breeder who said the cat was caught up at LaGuardia Airport and stuck at pet control HE said he would require an additional $580.05 for a weatherproof crate and an additional $410.50 for shots for the cat. She called the airport and tried to find information about pet control but was informed it didn’t exist. She began to question the legitimacy of the breeder and asked for her money back. He said he would return the money to her via Venmo in a few days. She did not receive her money and called him again. He asked for her banking information and routing number which she did not provide. She notified her bank and Venmo. Venmo said they could not refund her money because the transaction was labeled as “friends and family.”

10:19 p.m.: A disturbance on Belmont Street. An intoxicated resident was yelling at officers and refused to cooperate. She was handcuffed and placed in the rear of the cruiser. Another resident said she threw his clothes in the fireplace. Belmont Fire had extinguished the fire and opened the chimney flue to allow the smoke to exit the home. The flue was closed prior to the second fire being started.

Arrest

Belmont resident charged with defacing or damaging property at10:19 p.m. on March 13.

Belmont Police responded to five mental health and three domestic calls between March 7 and March 14.