Police Log: Party Guest Gets Out of Control, Chimney Repair Scam

Aug 27, 2023

The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department.

May 22, 3:39 a.m.: Police received a report of a suspicious man at Arsenal Mall. Security spotted a man looking into windows at Marshalls, and then was seen inside the parking garage. The man went into a port-o-potty and would not come out until police arrived. When he did, police spoke to the man and learned that he had a warrant for his arrest. Robert Richards, 35, of Watertown, was arrested for the warrant out of Waltham District Court for shoplifting by concealing merchandise.

May 25, 9:39 p.m.: A woman was arrested for violating a harassment order issued out of Waltham District Court. Police determined she had violated the terms of the order and placed Mahboobe Aria 45, of Watertown under arrest

May 22, 1:06 p.m.: A Westminster Avenue homeowner was away for a few days and when he returned he noticed several windows were damaged and a brick was found on the floor inside. In total, seven windows were broken. Nothing was missing from the home and it will cost at least $1,000 to repair. Police are investigating.

May 22, 8:45 p.m.: A Boylston Street resident reported an ID fraud. On May 5, the resident's employer notified him that a fraudulent unemployment claim had been made in his name. Then he received a Visa credit card for which he had not applied on May 22. He is not sure how someone got his information. He asked the bank and the credit card bureaus to monitor his account.

May 22, 11:14 p.m.: A guest at a birthday party being held at a home on Hillside Road got out of control and damaged the interior of the home. Eight people ages 26-45 attended the gathering, and one visitor got drunk and became confrontational. When the host asked him to stop drinking the man got angry and began to yell. Then he punched a hole in an upstairs door, and he grabbed a wine bottle and began swinging it at the host and some of the guests. Finally, he grabbed one of the guests by the shoulder and began shaking him. Police were called, but the man left before they arrived. Officers were able to identify the man. A 40-year-old Somerville man was summoned to Waltham District Court for destruction of property and assault with a dangerous weapon.

May 23, 8:52 a.m.: A guest at the Residence Inn by Marriott parked her bike at the rack near the entrance of the hotel at 10 p.m. on May 22. When she returned at 8:30 a.m. the following day, the wheel and tires were missing. They are valued at about $200.

May 23, 10:19 a.m.: A Waverley Avenue resident was expecting a package containing clothing, but she never received it. When she called the company on May 22 to inquire what happened she was told it had been confirmed delivered on May 6 at 3:30 p.m. A video from the building shows a women, age 65-75, wearing a flowery dress came into the package room from outside the building, picked up a package, and continued into the building. Police are trying to identify the woman, and determine if the package had been taken by mistake.

May 23, 12:39 p.m.: A man used the bathroom at the Watertown Free Public Library, and after he left he realized he left his cellphone there. He went back to the library about 20-30 minutes later, but it was gone. The white iPhone SE is valued at $500.

May 23, 4:01 p.m.: A woman in Starbucks on Mt. Auburn Street had been acting suspiciously. She had been hanging around the display area for about 10-15 minutes. An employee noticed she had a black Starbucks coffee grinder in her bag, but was not sure if she had taken it. The woman left, and the incident was reported to police. A woman fitting the description of the suspect was spotted in front of City Hall. When officers spoke to her, they saw she had a black Starbucks coffee grinder. When asked about it she said it was a gift from someone but they could have it back. She gave it to Police, who returned it to Starbucks. It was valued at $24.95. No charges are being sought on the 34-year-old woman from Newton.

May 24, 10:25 a.m.: Packages were taken from an apartment building on Main Street. A resident reported the missing package, and video surveillance showed a person enter the vestibule in the entrance at about 4:45 p.m. the previous day and take three packages. The reporting person did not recognize the person, who was described as a Black male, age 20-30, with a full black beard, and wearing a grey Red Sox hat, a maroon sweatshirt, black pants, and black Adidas sneakers. He also carried a maroon sweatshirt and a black duffle bag. One package contained a pair of boots worth $100, a second package contained $230 rock-climbing shoes, and the owner of the third package has not been identified.

May 24, 2:46 p.m.: A Repton Circle resident reported a stolen package. The person had received clothing, but decided to return them. The package was left with the outgoing mail on May 6, but on May 24 the company told the woman they were charging her for the items, worth $271. She contacted the store and was told they never received the items. She believes the package was stolen from the mailroom.

May 24, 4:56 p.m.: A Maple Street resident reported a home maintenance scam. The homeowner said at 4:30 p.m., three men came to the front door and said they were from Sunrise Roofing. They said they had been driving by and noticed that the home's chimney was damaged, and said they would repair it. The homeowner let the three men into the home and one went up on the roof. The man broke several bricks off the chimney and took the chimney cap off. Then they told the homeowner they could repair it for $3,400. The homeowner realized it was a scam and told them to leave. The suspects were described as one heavy set male about age 50 with light-colored hair. The other two were white males in their 20s, one with a thin build and the other with a heavyset build. All three spoke with Irish accents.

May 26, 2:03 p.m.: A woman went to pay the rent at the Watertown Housing Authority on Waverley Avenue, but the office was closed. The 77-year-old woman had been driven by her friend, a 69-year-old woman. The 77-year-old took out her phone to try to take a picture of the closed office to show that she had tried to pay the rent. When she was doing so, an unknown woman carrying two dogs began to yell at her for taking pictures. The 77-year-old then pointed the phone's camera at the unknown woman, who grabbed the phone and threw it and damaged it. Then the 77-year-old took the other woman's phone and threw it. The unknown woman grabbed the 77-year-old and punched her. Then the unknown woman got into a grey sedan and drove away.

May 27, 1:37 p.m.: Police received a report of animal cruelty on Robert Ford Road. Two adults were sitting in their backyard when they saw a small grey Pomeranian dog running in the yard. They told police that they saw a man come out, pick up the dog, and smack the dog with an open hand, making the dog go airborne and land on the grass. The dog ran into the owner's apartment. Police spoke to the dog's owner, who said that he had come out and picked up the dog by the scruff of its neck, and dropped it in the direction of the door. He denied smacking the dog. The officers looked at the dog, who appeared to be in good health and had no visible injuries. Based on the statements of two independent witnesses, the dog owner — a 34-year-old Watertown man — was summoned to Waltham District Court for cruelty to animals.

May 27, 7:07 p.m.: A man pushed a shopping cart full of items out of the Target without paying. Security saw the person loading food and clothing into his cart. He walked past the registers without paying for $529.77 worth of items. Police located the man, who admitted taking the items from the store. The 49-year-old homeless man was trespassed and he was summoned to Waltham District Court for shoplifting, a second offense.

May 28, 6:02 p.m.: A Carroll Street resident went into her garage and discovered that someone had chopped some logs into fire wood, and left the ax next to it. There is no door on the garage. Police asked around to see if anyone had any information, but no one knew who chopped the wood.