Recently in Not So Wise Guys Category

By a guy police tell me sort of looked like a firefighter.

Halloween related? Who knows.

He didn't have any fire department logos or anything on his clothes, or a helmet, but police say Robert Levesque, 39, of 33 Fourth Ave., was wearing dress pants, a white shirt and a sweater, much like a deputy chief would when he was arrested Saturday night.

Police got a call that the Crown Victoria, formerly used by a deputy chief, was missing from the Fire Prevention Bureau at 93 Mammoth Road, about 9:30 p.m.

Before long firefighters spotted it nearby and followed it while police caught up.

The driver initially refused to stop for police, police said.

Officers finally got him stopped at Dracut Street and Sixth Avenue, according to police.

Levesque is charged with larceny of a motor vehicle, and will probably face charges for not pulling over right away too, police said.

It is unlikely he will face charges of trying to impersonate a firefighter, since he didn't drive the thing to a fire or anything quite that ridiculous.

It's worth noting that in 2005, Levesque was accused of stealing a car, breaking into a CVS in Tewksbury to steal pills, and then leading police on a 90 mph chase up I-93 and I-495 in the stolen car.

I can't find out tonight if he was ever convicted in that case, but it sounds like things could have turned out worse tonight.

Oh Shane Carney, we hardly knew ya.

In 1988, at the tender age of roughly 12, police tell me you pushed another young boy into the Pawtucket Canal near the Francis Gatehouse. That other boy drowned, and according to police you were convincted of murder.

Since you were so young, you were eventually released from custody.

And it was 2002 before you were arrested for assaulting a police officer, destroying property, making threats and disorderly conduct.

It was 2004 when you were arrested for assault with a dangerous weapon.

It was 2006 when you were once again arrested for assaulting a police officer, resisting arrest, assaulting someone else, and disorderly conduct.

I'm not sure you were ever convicted after those arrests, so I won't assume you were guilty.

But on July 18, 2008, when a combination of city, state and federal agencies arrested you for selling a handgun and 84 rounds of ammunition to a cooperating federal witness, you really got yourself in some trouble.

You pled guilty in June to being a felon in possession of ammunition, and today you were sentenced to 15 years in federal prison.

We barely got a chance to enjoy your company here in Lowell.

Farewell, Shane Carney, 32, formerly of 549 Pine St.

I do my best to be fair to those who have not yet been convicted, since surely police arrest the innocent at least every once and a while, but you went and got yourself convicted.

The City Lowell, and all your associates in TRG - Gray will surely miss you.

There is no such thing as parole when it's federal prison that you call home.

So, after serving his country in Bosnia, Iraq, Afghanistan and Afghanistan again, Army Reserve Master Sgt. John Rondeau has been living in West Sixth Street in Lowell for less than a year.

In that short time, his new pickup truck has twice been demolished by errant drivers while parked in front of his home near West Street, where he lives with his wife and daughter.

This is the damage done when it happened for the second time on Saturday, about 11:40 p.m.

This time was extra low, because police say the driver of the Chevy Tahoe, Renne Milinazzo, 38, of 132 Hampshire St., admitted to having a few beers, and was slurring her speech so badly she could barely finish sentences.

She had also tried to run from the scene, police said.

Rondeau told me his wife saw the driver take off, though, so he chased her down.

"This was the second time," he said. "I wasn't letting this one go."

Police found Rondeau and Milinazzo on West Street, nearby. Milinazzo complained of minor injuries so she was taken to Saints Medical Center instead of being booked.

She will be charged with operating under the influence of alcohol, leaving the scene of a property damage accident, and marked lanes violation.

Lets all slow down on West Sixth Street there for a while eh? I think Mr. Rondeau deserves better than a third wrecked truck for his service.

When he kicked in the front door at 16 Varney St., in Lowell, Sunday night about 11:45 p.m.

Police say the guy was looking for "Omar," who definitely did not live at 16 Varney St., and when the resident who does live at 16 Varney St., met the guy at the door, the guy swung and struck the roughly 40-year-old resident in the arm 6 or 7 times with the shovel.

What was left of the shovel is here.

The resident apparently fought back, because what's left of the guy is here.

Police say this guy, who I can't identify since he was taken to the hospital to get his face treated before being booked, also struggled with Officers Caz Czarnionka and Mindy Dower when they showed up and fairly quickly arrested him.

The resident was at the scene and seemed to be doing surprisingly well for having had a shovel broken over his arm. His arm was all bandaged up by the time I got there, and I heard him say he was going to head up to LGH to get checked out further.

Here is the accused being led to the wagon, on his way to being charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (shovel).

There was some talk of other charges too, but I'm not sure what they were going to be. Apparently they can't get him for burglarly since initial indications were that the resident prevented him from entering the house.

Someone steals a Chevrolet Jimmy while it's owner is pumping gas at Xtra Mart on Gorham Street, and then drives it into a gas pump, knocking the gas pump completely over.

That wouldn't have impressed me a lot, but then the owner of the Jimmy jumped in the passenger seat, and began to fight with the thief, who was still driving, as the thief hit two other cars and drove down Gorham Street and onto the Lowell Connector, all while fighting with the owner.

That must have been a hell of a site to see it all unfold.

The SUV eventually stopped just after getting on the connector, in the weeds off in the breakdown lane, and that's where this guy was placed under arrest. He's being treated by EMT's here, and was taken to Lowell General Hospital to get checked out.

The ID I got last night was wrong, the suspect is Jason M. Cucinotti of 2 Duris Ave., Billerica.

He is charged with carjacking, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (motor vehicle), operating after revocation, operating to endanger, and malicious destruction of property over $250. He was also arrested on two default warrants.

The carjacking charge surprised me since the owner wasn't in the driver's seat, but police suggested that since the owner was pumping gas he was still in possession or control of the vehicle, which would make it more than just car theft.

Here's a perplexing one from police in Salem, N.H.

Apparently, Salem Police found out on Tuesday that a table containing about $3,500 worth of clothing from the J.Crew store at the Mall at Rockingham Park had been cleared off by thieves.

Quite a haul, but what makes the story interesting is that police say store employees saw two females committing the theft, but called corporate headquarters instead of police, per company policy.
"They were unable to get permission to contact police until the next day," according to Salem Capt. Shawn Patten.

"We continue to be preplexed by the policies of some retailers with regards to notifying and cooperating with authorities when thefts occur in their retail store."

Oh and guess what? Police have no suspects or leads at this time.

I mean, seriously? J.Crew thinks some corporate security stooge is really going to take care of their junk better than police?
Or that it's better to wait 24 hours before investigating a snatch and grab robbery?

I'm not sure I'd buy a ton of clothes from a company with that kind of brainpower. Although, who knows, maybe The Sun will be hit with more layoffs, and if I'm down on my luck I'll know where to "shop."

I ran into this same thing last year when I saw an armed robber running out of Store 24 on Bridge Street.
I walked in just as the guy fled and the clerk was on the telephone, so I didn't call 911 myself cause I didn't want to tie up the 911 operator with two telephone calls.

Instead, I called the Main Desk, and gave a brief description of the guy I saw.

The main desk had heard nothing of this robbery, and I would eventually learn that the clerk had not been on the telephone with 911. He called the store's owner before police.

Frankly, I wonder whether police should be able to just immediately write off such incidents.

Why should police resources be wasted investigating crimes against a company with policies that drastically reduce the possibility of solving the crimes?

Here's an idea. If you're going to rob a guy in the heart of downtown, say at about 10 p.m., on a Tuesday night, at Market and Central streets, maybe don't wear bright red pants while doing it.

Because I'm willing to bet those pants didn't exactly help the cause of the 16-year-old kid who got arrested for just such a robbery tonight.

Police say he and another boy, who got away, pushed and robbed an unidentified man at Central and Market streets, making off with his cellular telephone.

The 16-year-old still had the phone on him when Officer Billy Finn spotted him at Union and Chapel streets a short time later.

He'll be charged with unarmed robbery.