Belmont Police Log, Nov. 27 to Dec. 4: Attempted robbery near Beaverbrook Playground, stolen bicycle, fraud, sexual assault 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, Nov. 27

8:42 p .m.: A 57-year-old Belmont man reported an attempted robbery. He was walking on Trapelo Road near Beaverbrook Playground when he was approached by four males, all in their early 20s. Two asked him if he had any money. He replied, “no.” One of the males was black and the others were Hispanic. The black male said they would take his backpack, phone and money. He quickly walked onto Trapelo Road and said he was going to call the police. The black man reached for his backpack but he was able to get away and the individuals fled the area. The black male was approximately 5-foot-11-inches with a tight afro hair style and a black jacket. He was unable to describe the Hispanic males that were also there. One was wearing a winter hat. Another one was wearing a neck-gator that covered their face. Belmont dispatch gave a description to Waltham Police. Waltham Police, Massachusetts State Police and Watertown canine assisted in the search but were unable to locate anyone. Waltham was able to locate a suspicious male on Waverley Oaks Road who said he was coming from Belmont. He was with five of his friends but did not know where they were. Officers got his information. The incident is still under investigation.

Tuesday, Nov. 28

3:25 p.m.: A Chester Road resident reported suspicious activity. The reporting party and home owner said this weekend he and his family traveled to New York. They returned home Sunday night and found the front door of their home opened and unlocked. He and his family searched the residence. Nothing appeared disturbed or missing. There appeared to be no signs of forced entry. The last person to shut the door was is daughter. She is almost positive the door was locked. The family left for the day and returned home at approximately 3:15 p.m. There were balloons tied to the front door. They contacted the landlord who advised them to contact the police.

5:12 p.m.: A Criminal complaint against a Canton woman for assault and battery.

6:08 p.m.: A Chilton Street resident reported a stolen bicycle. A Belmont Middle School student said she left her bicycle and helmet over Thanksgiving break at the Belmont Middle School secured on the bike rack. When she arrived on Monday, the bicycle was still secured on the bike rack. When she returned at 3:45 p.m., the bicycle was gone. It was a Haro mountain bike, black with green highlights, valued at $550.

Wednesday, Nov. 29

9:03 a.m.: Collision with possible injuries in area of Fairview Avenue and School Street between a 2022 Hyundai operated by a Medford man, a 2008 Buick operated by a Cambridge man. Belmont Fire and Rescue also responded. Both operators declined medical attention. The operator of the Buick said she was stopped at the stop sign on Fairview Avenue. When she proceeded forward, she collided with the Hyundai. The operator of the Hyundai said he was stopped at the stop sign, looked both ways and without warning collided with the Buick. The Buick sustained severe front end damage. The Hyundai had front bumper damage and washer fluid leak. The Buick was towed from the scene.

3:59 p.m.: A Simmons Avenue resident reported fraud. He has been in contact via Facebook with someone named Le Mai Tuyet. He was introduced to a website brandhoffavoffhos.com. He was asked to wire money into the account and he would receive money back. He believed the site was legitimate and he would be able to make money off the site. He made payments through Tether, a form of cryptocurrency through the app Crypto.com. The person told him in order to take money out of the account, he would have to put more money in. He put nearly $30,000 into this website’s account. He was never able to pull money out of the account. There was approximately $6,000 he was unable to access. The address and routing number he wired the first payment to was in Huntington Beach, California.

6:35 p.m.: A Chilton Street resident reported attempted fraud. She received a phone call about putting solar panels on her roof. The caller said they were with Massachusetts Green Energy. The company knew information about her address, home and her name and scheduled a visit at 6 p.m. today. The company failed to show up. She called the number back and it was answered by a robotic answering machine. The machine did not state the name of the company. She believes it was fake. She did not give any of her personal information over the phone but was concerned they knew her address. A solar company truck, “Sun Power,” was parked outside her house recently. She believes it may be related.

Thursday, Nov. 30

8:33 a.m.: Officers spoke to a Birch Hill resident concerning fraud. He recently was contacted by a collection agency informing him he was responsible for a $2,000 debt. He had some masonry work done back in June by Boston’s Oldest Masonry company. The man doing the work required money to start the job. He gave him a check for $3,000. The man cashed the check and returned a few days later to start the job. He finished and was paid the balance of $2,000. A few days later, the mason texted him claiming the check was blocked by the bank because they believed it was fraudulent. He provided the mason with a second check for $2,000. He believed the issue was resolved but three days later he was contacted by a check cashing business, PLS, informing him he owes PLS $2000 and learned the mason never paid PLS back for the $2,000 loan for cashing the check. Sage Capital Collections Agency is now involved and is holding him responsible for the $2,000 owed to PLS. He has contacted the Attorney General’s office and Division of Banks to dispute the debt. He was advised to file a police report.

9:35 a.m.: A Lincoln Street resident reported fraud. On Thursday, Nov. 23, she discovered her Facebook account was hacked. She discovered the hack when she noticed she was logged out of her Facebook account on both her mobile phone and laptop. She has been unable to access her account because the hacker changed her name, profile picture and other pertinent information associated with the account. She has tried all the tips recommended by Facebook to rectify the situation but has been unsuccessful because the emails and phone number were changed. She has found no way to contact Facebook to report the hack. She has received two suspicious emails. One was a request to resent her Facebook password and the second was informing her about a log-in from an unknown device she does not normally use. She filed a report with the Boston FBI field office who requested she file a report with her local police department.

Friday, Dec. 1

7:39 a.m.: Collision in area of Trapelo Road and White Street between a 2023 Polestar operated by a Belmont man and a 2022 Nissan operated by a Brookline woman. Both vehicles were towed from the scene. The operator of the Nissan was issued a citation for failure to yield to an approaching motor vehicle when turning left.

1:55 p.m.: An Oakley Road resident reported fraud. She recently had a medical procedure in July. Her employer paid the deductible through Voya. She received a bill from her doctor in September for a deductible that should have been paid by Voya. She did not immediately contact Voya because she thought the payment was late. She received another bill in October and when she contacted Voya she said the payments were sent and they provided her copies of the checks that were signed and cashed. The doctor’s office said the signatures were not from anyone who works at the practice. She informed Voya who instructed her to file a police report.

Monday, Dec. 4

1:26 p.m. A Lexington Street resident reported fraud. At 10 p.m. last night, $64 of virtual good were taken from him through a private party via PayPal. The individual was able to compromise two of his email accounts, which he confirmed with PayPal this morning. He has contacted Chase to put a freeze on his account and was advised to contact all his banks and Credit Bureau to advise him of this incident.

Arrest

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Belmont Chief of Police James MacIsaac have confirmed that Rickland Powell, 59, of Belmont has been arrested in connection with assaulting a female child who is known to him.

The preliminary investigation suggests that on multiple occasions Rickland Powell sexually assaulted the victim and photographed her inside his Belmont home. He has been charged with two counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14, distributing obscene matter to a minor, four counts of aggravated rape of a child, four counts of rape of a child with force, and posing a child in the nude.

On Nov. 28, 2023, the allegations were reported to Belmont police who were granted a search warrant for the defendant’s home where they located media files, photos and other items. On November 30, police received information that the defendant was in Andover, when police approached him the defendant fled in his vehicle at a high rate of speed. Rickland Powell was subsequently located this morning in the Middlesex Fells Reservation in Stoneham. He was placed under arrest and subsequently transported to an area hospital.  

He was arraigned virtually today in Cambridge District Court and held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing scheduled for December 8, 2023

Between Nov. 27 and Dec. 3, Belmont Police responded to one domestic that resulted in criminal charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and violation of a restraining order and one mental health call.