Belmont Police Log, Sept. 25-Oct. 1: Teenage bicyclist struck, man on scooter struck, woman pays contractor who doesn't return 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.
Monday, Sept. 25
9:37 a.m.: A Hastings Road resident reported a possible theft. He owns a home on Fairview Avenue. At 9 a.m. on Sept. 19th, one of his town-issued trash barrels went missing. He searched the area and could not find it. He was advised to contact the Department of Public Works to issue him a new can.
2:46 p.m.: A Trapelo Road resident reported suspicious activity regarding a package. On Sept. 23rd, a package was delivered to his front porch at 11:46 p.m. When he arrived home at 3:17 p.m., he discovered the package was opened. He has video of neighbors passing by his package several times at 11:45 a.m. and noon. However, the package is not visible after it is delivered. The contents of the package, a water bottle, was still inside, but it was damaged. It is not known if the water bottle was damaged during delivery or when it was opened.
Tuesday, Sept. 26
11:11 a.m.: Collision in the area of Lexington Street and Trapelo Road between a 2001 Toyota operated by a Lexington woman and a 2010 Ford operated by a Watertown man. The Toyota was rear-ended by the Ford. The operator of the Toyota was uninjured but the passenger complained of neck pain. Belmont Fire and Rescue evaluated the passenger who declined further medical attention. The operator of the Ford said he was distracted, watching a police officer stop another vehicle, which is what caused him to rear-end the Toyota. There was heavy rear damage to the Toyota and minor front-end damage to the Ford. The operator of the Ford was issued a citation for following too close.
5:23 p.m.: Collision between a 2018 Volkswagen operated by a South Boston woman and a Belmont 13-year-old male bicyclist in the area of 66 Leonard St. The bicyclist was struck by the Volkswagen. The teenager was sitting on the jersey barrier in the roadway with injuries. The operator of the Volkswagen said she was in traffic on Leonard Street. As she was approaching a crosswalk, the bicyclist passed her on the right side and cut in front of her, causing the collision. He fell to the ground, but got back up. The bicyclist said he thought the motor vehicle was stopped which is why he cut in front of her. He was bleeding from the chin and left leg. A witness observed the motor vehicle slow down at the crosswalk and speed up when they saw no one crossing which is when the bicyclist passed her from the right and cut in front of her. The bicyclist was transported to Children’s Hospital and issued a citation for failure to signal and yield. The bicycle did not appear to be damaged.
Wednesday, Sept. 27
11:08 a.m.: A Newton Street resident reported fraud. She believes she was scammed out of money. There was a crack in the concrete of her basement she wanted repaired. She searched online and located a company called Golden Key Masonry and Construction. On Sept. 8th, she called the company and spoke to someone who informed her someone would be at her home within the hour. A male party arrived within five minutes who said the company is a local mom and pop and could use the business. He gave her a verbal estimate of $1,400 to fix the crack. He said a crew would arrive at 8 a.m. on Sept. 11. She said the crew arrived and broke up the concrete floor of her basement. A foreman asked for an additional $7,500 for the cost of ordering more materials and covering the labor. She requested a written estimate and receipts for the material ordered. The foreman said she should have asked for that before they began the work. He refused to continue the work without the additional payment. She gave them the additional $7,500. The crew left and said they would be back the next day. They returned the next day, asking if they could store the materials in her garage. They worked half a day and then left. They have not returned since to finish the work or retrieve the materials. She has repeatedly called the company and has not received a call back. Officers called both numbers she had and left a voice mail. They received a call back from a male identifying himself as George Anderson who said he would call the resident to resolve the matter. He would not give the officers any further information.
3:02 p.m.: A Munroe Street resident reported unemployment fraud. She tried to file for unemployment on Sept. 22 and was told someone else already filed under her name. The person who filed the claim asked for everything to be done via email. The state provided her with the email address they used. She will continue to work with the Massachusetts Unemployment Department.
Thursday, Sept. 28
1:08 p.m.: A Pilgrim Road resident reported theft. On Sept. 20th at 10:15 a.m., he picked up dry cleaning down the street from his house. He dropped his wallet somewhere between his driveway and front door. When he left he observed FedEx boxes outside his home. When he returned at 10:30 a.m. he was unable to find his wallet and observed the FedEx boxes were no longer on his property. On Sept. 21st, approximately $285 was charged to his American Express card to purchase edibles which he didn’t order. He contacted American Express to report the fraud and they issued him a new card. He reported his other credit cards lost. He also had $125 in his wallet. He was advised to call back if there is further fraudulent activity on his cards. It is not known what happened to his FedEx packages.
8:25 p.m.: A Franklin Street resident reported suspicious activity. An older white male with gray hair, a goatee and glasses wearing a high visibility vest, gray sweater and jeans was let into her home by her nanny at 9 a.m. that morning. He said he was an insurance adjuster from Hanover Insurance and needed to take photos of the living room, bathroom, electric box, water heater and furnace. When her nanny told her, she didn’t think anything of it because she was busy at work and just purchased the home. He was inside for 10 minutes and then left. When she returned home she realized she was never notified from her insurance company that an adjuster was coming. Her insurance company is also Norfolk, not Hanover. She contacted both insurance companies and neither had a record of sending an adjuster out to her home. The Ring cameras recorded the unknown male. Nothing was taken. He left after taking the photographs. She suspects the man went to the wrong home. She will ask her neighbors if they were expecting an insurance adjuster.
Friday, Sept. 29
3:12 p.m.: An Edgemoor Road resident reported larceny of a scooter. Her son’s black electric Apex scooter was stolen. He locked it up at 7:45 a.m. on Sept. 29 behind the Lion’s Club on the platform behind the MBTA station on the bike rack using a cable lock. When he returned, he found the lock cut and his scooter gone. He was also advised to report the theft to the MBTA. The scooter was valued at $300.
Saturday, Sept. 30
3:11 p.m.: An Albert Avenue resident reported a stolen purple mountain bicycle. His daughter was home with a friend who left their bike on the sidewalk in front of the house. At 2:20 p.m., the doorbell security camera showed an individual in a dark-colored pickup truck drive by. Then, it showed an individual walking to the bike, looking at it and walking it up the road to where the truck was. The video will be sent to the Belmont Police.
6:59 p.m.: Collision in area of 251 Belmont St. between a 2001 BMW operated by a Watertown woman and an electric scooter. The operator of the BMW was turning left near Fiorella’s to pick up her dinner when her vehicle was struck on the right rear quarter panel. A man, wearing a helmet, was on an electric scooter in the bike lane. He said he was ok and left the scene before officers arrived. Officers were unable to find the operator of the scooter. The operator of the BMW was issued a citation for failure to yield.
Sunday, Oct. 1
7:22 p.m.: An employee at Cushing Square Service reported a possible fraud. He was pumping gas for a customer that comes to the station on a regular basis. He doesn’t know the customer by name. He handed him a stack of business cards and said if he signed up for an account he would received every dollar back and a sign-up bonus. He believes this was a scam. The business name on the card was Tranzact Card. The contact information was for Bill Taylor. The employee said he will try to get a photo of the man’s vehicle from the cameras on the property. The employee threw away the cards.
Between Sept. 25 and Oct. 1, Belmont Police to five domestics including one arrest for violation of a restraining order and one criminal complaint for a violation of a restraining order and another criminal complaint for assault and seven mental health calls.