Police Blog

Trouble in Billerica

Tue, 05 May 2009 18:19:20 -0500

It sounds like a SWAT Team from the North East Middlesex Law Enforcement Council is in Billerica, helping police deal with a woman who is inside a home somewhere in the area of Billerica Avenue with a long-barrel gun. Police said earlier that they think the gun is a BB gun, but obviously no one can take any chances. Radio broadcasts indicate she has been spotted through the windows with the gun multiple times. A staging area has been setup at DJ Reardons, 100 Billerica Ave., and the road is also closed at Mt. Pleasant St. This has been ongoing since before 5:30 p.m., when Billerica Police setup a perimeter around the house. The woman isn't answering phone calls to the house. At the same time, Billerica Police are investigating a report that someone broke into Iverson Ford to steal copper, and they're working on that case too. It's a busy day in Billerica, but they seem on top of things so far. UPDATE: After a roughly 5 hour standoff that closed Billerica Avenue from Town Farm Lane to Mount Pleasant St., a roughly 40-year-old woman was finally taken into custody about 10:30 p.m. A NEMLEC SWAT Team tried to talk her out for hours, and loud bangs went through the neighborhood as they fired tear gas through the front windows of the home at 20 Billerica Ave., but the woman would not come out. The SWAT Team finally went in about 10:30 p.m., and despite the woman throwing a knife at them, managed to arrest the woman without anyone getting hurt. The woman was taken to Saints Medical Center in Lowell. Police did not immediately identify her since she had not yet been booked. There was talk on police radio of trying to have her checked out by mental health professionals too, but police can almost never comment on that type of thing due to medical privacy laws. Police hadn't touched anything inside because they were still photographing and processing the scene, so it's still not clear if it was a BB gun or a rifle. When police first went to the house at 5:22 p.m., though, the woman answered the door and stuck the barrel of the gun in an officer's face, police said. Not a friendly way to greet someone. It ended well, though. It's 12:18 a.m., now, and police are still at the house processing evidence and securing it. She'll face multiple counts of assault with a firearm, and one count each of assault and battery with a knife, and resisting arrest. Five hours is a long time to wait, but not too long for a good ending where no one gets hurt. Police are planning to put out a press release sometime early Wednesday morning, but it hasn't come yet and deadline is here. I'll provide and update, and maybe shorten all this, tomorrow once we have all the facts. Oh and by the way, all while handling this standoff, Billerica Police also foiled a break in attempt at the former Iversen Ford on Route 3A, where some people were allegedly trying to steal copper, and investigated two house breaks. I'm told they had a suspect in both house breaks. This is a department that's taken some heat for various things in recent years, but I'll tell you I certainly think it's worth everyone's attention that a department this size could successfully handle four incidents of that caliber all at the same time. I never heard any panic or confusion on police radio either. It was all organized. Well done. And all while Chief Rosa was at Town Meeting, which I'm sure was no easy assignment with the way town budgets look these days.

Thorndike Rollover

Mon, 04 May 2009 20:54:12 -0500

No one was hurt in this two-car crash on Thorndike Street at the onramp to the connector just before dark on Tuesday. It looked like this minivan had struck the side of the Chevrolet Tahoe as the Tahoe was making a left turn onto the Connector onramp, but looks can be deceiving. I won't really know what happened or who was driving until I get a look at the report, which I haven't been able to do yet.

Here's a little video in case you've never seen a car get rolled over.

What a Mess

Mon, 04 May 2009 17:03:58 -0500

While city police were elsewhere in the city arresting a 45-year-old limousine driver for being drunk while taking kids home from the prom Friday night, state police were arresting 22 other people for drunken driving. When David Procopio, a state police spokesman, e-mailed me the information this afternoon my eyes bulged out a little. Lowell checkpoints typically yield somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 or a dozen arrests. The checkpoint only lasted for three hours, from midnight to 3 a.m., Saturday morning. Procopio couldn't immediately get me the large list of names of those busted, but I might have it by sometime tomorrow, and I'll gladly share it with you. We do know who one of the drivers was, though. James Clark, 56, of 192 Wilder St., caught the attention of our court reporter Lisa Redmond today, because he was arraigned for his sixth OUI. Lisa reports that prosecutors said Clark was so drunk he couldn't even finish a sobriety test, and eventually blew a .27 on the breathalyzer, which is more than three times the legal limit. He had previous convictions in 1984, 1987, 1994, 1998 and 2004. He's being held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing. And he was just one of the 22. Procopio wasn't sure if this was good or bad news. The good news is that 22 people, 23 if you count the limo driver, were caught drunken driving. The bad news, obviously, is that 23 people were driving drunk, or at least allegedly were. Procopio is a realist though, so he said police were pleased. "We like to say that the ideal checkpoint would be one with no arrests because no one is driving under the influence, but experience tells us that there will always be people driving who should not be. We will do everything we can to find those people and get them off the road before they hurt someone," he said. I think he means it. About an hour after I got Procopio's e-mail, I got an e-mail from another state police spokesman. This Saturday night, into Sunday morning, there will be another sobriety checkpoint somewhere in Middlesex County. I think I can admit that since I was returning from vacation on a cross country flight, I had quite a few beers on Friday, and I was definitely tipsy when I got back to Lowell. I took the T from Logan and walked from the Gallagher Terminal to my apartment in Centralville, and you know what? It wasn't too bad a walk. Too bad 22 other people didn't try out my idea.

Bad Stabbing in Centralville

Sun, 03 May 2009 23:28:50 -0500

Sometimes I can get a bit of an idea of how serious an incident is by the tone of officers' voices on police radio. About 10:15 Sunday night, officers were called to 686 Bridge Street by a 911 call reporting a man had been stabbed. Officers got to the scene in about a minute, and literally seconds later asked dispatchers to have the ambulance hurry. Their tone of voice was very clear. The victim was stabbed multiple times, and no one was willing to say the wounds were non life-threatening. Police initially thought they had a suspect on Second Street, in case you drove by and saw the commotion, but it turned out that guy was cleared. The victim was never taken to a city hospital. He was rushed directly to Regatta Field and flown by MedFlight to Beth Israel in Boston. No word on his condition so far, but I heard he was conscious at the scene. That's all I've got for now. I'll update this as soon as I learn more. No pictures or anything either. Police, firefighters and EMT's were really in a hurry on this one so the victim was long gone when I got there. I've gotta tell you I'm pretty quick, though. If the victim survives, the folks at the scene might deserve a lot of credit for how fast they worked. UPDATE: Just a little after midnight police put handcuffs on a guy named Todd Mitchell. He's 18, and lives in Lowell, and he is now charged with armed assault with intent to murder. Detective Sgt. Joe Murray arrested him at Liberty and Sagamore streets. Don't ask me how police tracked him down so fast or what the motive was, but here is a picture of Mitchell being led into the prisoner transport wagon by Officer Caz Czarnionka.

Cars Don't Belong in Bedrooms!

Sun, 03 May 2009 21:23:50 -0500

But that's exactly where one ended up at 36 Park St., in Lowell, on Sunday afternoon. The building is owned by Princeton Properties, across from the Nesmith House, off Route 133 near Nesmith Street in Lowell. Police had no immediate information on what happened, or on who was driving the car, except that it was a woman in her 70's. What was clear, though, was that a gray sedan had crashed through a 6-unit apartment building near Nesmith and Andover streets, leaving a roughly 10-foot whole in the brick wall, and devastation inside Damaso Perez's bedroom. I talked to Perez at the scene and he was remarkably calm, though obviously still aware how lucky he and the two 10-year-old sons that live with him were. They were in the living room watching television when a car crashed completely into Perez's bedroom. Upstairs neighbors Ryan Mosher and Alysha Boisvert said their entire apartment shook, things fell off the walls, and Boisvert said the impact even knocked her cat off the couch. They, like Perez, ran outside to see the damage, which I've included pictures of below. I'll update later once I learn the driver's name, and as much as I can about what happened. Perez, Boisvert and Mosher were all being put up by Princeton Properties last night, because Building Commissioner Robert Camacho determined the first floor unit and both units above it were not safe for habitation. Princeton Properties was going to provide the residents with another unit or a hotel room, though. The other three units on the other side of the building were still safe, Camacho said.

Here's some pictures from once the car was removed.

Man Shot at Familiar Address

Sun, 03 May 2009 00:42:55 -0500

As soon as I heard the call I knew where it was, and it turns out I was right. Remember 117 Grand Street? Three weeks ago, I blogged about that address because five gunshots were fired outside, including two that went through windows, and yet no one called police. I thought it was pathetic. Here's a picture of a bullet hole from that incident.

Well, someone DID call police late Saturday night, because at 11:49 p.m., at least five more shots were fired at the same address, except this time a man was shot in the lower leg. Police didn't think his wounds were life-threatening, but they seemed to be investigating some gang-related stuff even moments after they arrived. Here is a picture of the victim, who wasn't immediately identified. I'm sure no reports were filed by 1 a.m. I'll follow up on this Sunday.

I'll add a video in a bit. I've got to process it first. I hate to say it but I'm not terribly surprised this happened. Police couldn't immediately say if the incidents are related. I couldn't get terribly close this time since police had a crime scene set up, but I got close enough to notice the shell casings were certainly similar. In the first incident they found five .25 caliber casings, one of which is pictured here.

Last night it looked to me like they were certainly picking up either .25 or .22 caliber.

Salem Street, small fire.

Sat, 02 May 2009 23:46:55 -0500

There was a small fire in an abandoned triple-decker at 115 Salem St., tonight. Firefighters got called in for smoke showing from the third floor, but it turned out the fire was in the basement or first floor area, from what I picked up at the scene and on the scanner. It started a little before 11, but as of a little before midnight everyone is still at the scene, so I have very little information. I know the building was empty, a boarded up place just down from the Lowell Housing Authority. No immediate reports of injuries.

Rider Struck on Branch Street in Lowell

Sat, 02 May 2009 19:07:47 -0500

I'm back from vacation, and my first real reason to run out of the office was this guy, identified only as a roughly 40-year-old male, who was struck by a car while riding a scooter on Branch Street between the firehouse and Pailin Plaza Saturday about 6:15 p.m.

The injuries didn't seem too serious, but the accident drew quite a crowd on a sunny Saturday afternoon. I'll try to learn more details once reports are prepared. Here is the scooter he was riding.

Lowell Catholic Kids Nab Drunken Limo Driver

Sat, 02 May 2009 14:28:12 -0500

By Jen Myers Ah . . . remember the good old days when the KIDS got drunk at the prom? Like when some members of the Dracut High class of '93 got wasted and arrested at Loon Mountain in New Hampshire, ruining the "fun" for generations to come? Well, times have changed. Kids, parents and schools have become more aware. There are assemblies about prom safety, mock drunken driving crashes staged at high schools, and school-sponsored after-prom parties. A group of Lowell Catholic High School kids did the right thing. They hired a limo -- an immense stretch Cadillac Escalade number from Lynette's Limousine Service in Wilmington to make sure they got to their prom and back home again safely. Think again. While they were dancing the night away at the Westford Regency Friday night, the driver apparently had other plans. When he picked them up at 11 p.m., the kids say he was slurring his words. The students, including Bianca Crowley of Billerica and her date John Harris of Lawrence, said they saw him gulping out of a cup and noticed the smell of alcohol, likely rum, while he was driving. Eventually, they convinced him to pull into the parking lot of the Showcase Cinema in Lowell. The kids got out of the car and called their parents and police. They also called two classmates, who arrived and parked the limo in so the driver could not leave before the police arrived. See, they produce some smart kids over there at Lowell Catholic. They said the driver begged them not to call the police, got rid of the cup he was drinking from, smoked a cigar and threw-up. The kids stood outside the cinema in their fancy clothes and watched the police administer a sobriety test and haul him away. The kids are upset about what happened, what could have happened and that they paid $1195 for this "adventure." I tried to call the General Manager of Lynette's, Marco Delgado, but he had "stepped out." I left a message, but have not heard from him yet. I am awaiting a press release from the LPD with more information. This is not the first time a driver from Lynette's has found himself on the wrong side of the law . . . . Check out Sunday's Sun for the full story. Here is Mr. Brian Harrison, 45, of Tewksbury, as he was booked for OUI.

Under fire?

Fri, 01 May 2009 22:24:46 -0500

By Dennis Shaughnessey Who is taking pot shots at the elderly housing units on Fayette Street. These harmless folks are being terrorized by someone with a weapon who has no concern for the safety of the senior citizens living at the Mazur Park Apartments. On Thursday afternoon, after reports police found three spent shell from an assault weapon near the riverbank near the apartments. There were more shots on Monday, at the same apartment complex. This time, a resident in a third-floor bathroom, almost took one in the head as a stray bullet tore through a screened window and a hallway wall and came within inches of the man's head before lodging in the bathroom wall. Who's behind this and what is this person's problem? The senior citizens who live there are afraid to look out the window. They're afraid to step foot outside the building. These folks are minding their own business, trying to live peaceable lives and don't cause anyone any trouble. Why have they become targets. Here's hoping that the police can find the culprits, throw them behind bars and that our court system will prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.

Hudson police probe gunfire

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 14:48:04 -0500

Hudson police are currently investigating the felonious discharge of a firearm on April 28, about 9:15 pm. A red SUV was traveling north on River Road when it was struck by what appears to be a large caliber handgun round. Police say the round was fired from a moving vehicle traveling in the opposite direction. The victims in this case described the suspect vehicle as an older model, dark-colored pickup truck with a lighter-colored stripe on the sides. The vehicle did not have any distinguishing marks or bumper stickers and contained an unknown number of occupants. Anyone with information relating to this case is asked to contact the Hudson Police Department Criminal Investigation Division at (603) 886-6011 Callers may remain anonymous.

Crime online

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 14:19:21 -0500

If you missed Chris Camire's story this week, Billerica police are expanding their online presence. Incident reports are now uploaded to CrimeReports.com, which translates them into Google maps: Go on the site, and type in your Zip code (01821 for Billerica, 01862 for North Billerica). There aren't specifics, such as exact addresses and names of victims, but it's a useful tool for crime followers.

Missing Woburn Woman Found

Sat, 25 Apr 2009 21:40:44 -0500

WOBURN — Tammy Nickerson, a 45-year-old Woburn woman who left her job at Saints Medical Center in Lowell Thursday night and never made it home, has been found. That ends one mystery but begins another one as police in Woburn aren't saying when, where or how. A call was placed to the desk at the Woburn P.D. on Saturday at about 7 p.m. to see if there was any new news to add to the story that ran in Saturday morning's paper about the disappearance. An officer answering the phone said, "She's been located. That's all I can give you right now." Asked if we should try back later in the evening, the officer said something like, "You can try." On Friday, we were not able to find out if Tammy Nickerson was married, had children, lived with her parents, barely any information was given out except that she was 5'-7", weighed 180 pounds and had long blond hair. They provided WBZ-TV with a photo of the missing woman. Police also said that during the day a State Police helicopter scoured the route she normally took back and forth to work, looking for the brown Ford Taurus she was driving. Police gave us the plate number and asked for our help in getting the word out. It was a different story on Saturday night, however. When The Sun called back around 9:30 p.m. the same officer who answered previously said, "That's all we can tell you right now. Try again tomorrow or Monday." So, check back here tomorrow or Monday. Hopefully, we'll have more information.

Salem chain saw arrest

Thu, 23 Apr 2009 13:36:38 -0500

Seems that father and son John and Jake Wells of Salem, N.H., had a bit of an argument last night. When police arrived, John Wells held them off with a running chain saw. And before it was all over, Jake Wells was in cuffs, too. Click here

Vacation

Wed, 22 Apr 2009 23:41:46 -0500

I'll be on vaction until May, so I wish everyone a good week or so. Keep checking back. I'm sure my co-workers will still come up with some good stuff for the blog while they fill in for me. I just hope it's not too much better than my entries. -Rob