Police Log

CHECK ON CONDITION

Officers Quentin Tavaras and James Wenneman were dispatched to the Bald Hill Road Hobby Lobby on March 13 at approximately 6:55 p.m. for a report of two children seated alone in a black Acura for more than 20 minutes and that the car was not running.

At the scene the offers met with Hobby Lobby associates who advised that they had attempted to page the owner of the vehicle but nobody had responded. Officer Tavaras also responded to the vehicle where he noticed the two juveniles seated in the rear of the vehicle sleeping. He knocked on the window and the 12 year-old girl opened the door.

When asked, the girl said that her parents were in the Hobby Lobby shopping, and told officers she did not know how long they had been inside. She told officers that she was not cold and that her parents had possibly just gone inside. Officers then asked the three year-old in the car if she was cold, and she said she was.

Officers eventually were able to get in touch with the children’s parents, whose names were redacted in the police report for confidentiality. The father told officers that he had only been in the store for five minutes. Officers, however had received the call at 6:55 p.m. and the children had been seated in the vehicle for 20 minutes before the father responded. He was advised that a report would be taken and that DCYF would be called.

The man did not seem to be concerned and he informed officers that he was already involved with DCYF, which officers later called.

SHOPLIFTING

Officer Ryan Lancaster responded to the Bald Hill Road Kohl’s on March 15 at 3:38 p.m. for a report of a shoplifting in progress. Upon arrival he was informed that the suspects were still concealing merchandise inside the store. The suspects were described as a white male who was wearing a black coat and a white female wearing a black sweatshirt and dark sweatpants.

Officer Lancaster parked his vehicle on the side of the store out of sight then approached the front of the store on foot. As he walked, he noticed the two suspects exit through the front door followed by a member of the store’s loss prevention team.

The officer saw the security guard identify himself to the two suspects on the sidewalk in front of the store. At that point, a black Hyundai four door vehicle operated by a white male pulled up to the suspects and both quickly entered the car. The female suspect left the taken merchandise on the sidewalk.

As Officer Lancaster approached the vehicle, he heard the male suspect yell, “Go, go, go” from the passenger seat behind the driver. The vehicle then accelerated rapidly as the officer jumped aside to ensure he was not struck. The car then traveled westbound through the parking lot towards Bald Hill Road at a high rate of speed. According to the report, two pedestrians were almost struck as the car made its getaway.

There was no front license plate on the vehicle, and the rear license plate of the car was covered in cardboard and the officer was unable to get any details. Officer Lancaster was unable to stop the vehicle as he was on foot and too far from his cruiser. He provided a vehicle description to dispatch, but other units were unable to locate the vehicle.

A written statement was obtained from the store, which detailed the $759.94 worth of Nike shoes the suspects attempted to shoplift. A video of the theft was available, and the report was forwarded to detectives for review.

ANOTHER SHOPLIFTING

On March 11 around 5:10 p.m., Officer Christian Vargas was on routine patrol in the Warwick Mall when dispatch advised that the Nordstrom Rack Loss Prevention team was chasing a white male wearing a white hat and black jacket who had been observed shoplifting. The man was last seen heading towards the area of Not Your Average Joe’s restaurant.

Officer Vargas traveled to the restaurant and observed a white male holding a white hat in his hand who was walking back towards the roadway towards the officer, where he was confronted by Loss Prevention.

The man, later identified as Matthew Palma, 26, of 155 Douglas Avenue Apt. 6 in North Providence, was taken into custody. Two pairs of Ray Ban sunglasses, valued at a total of $239.91, were recovered from the suspect, who stated that those were the only items he shoplifted. Members of the store’s Loss Prevention team provided a written report stating they had observed Palma taking the items. The incident was also captured by surveillance cameras.

Palma was transported to police headquarters and charged with one count of misdemeanor shoplifting, and issued a court summons before being released.

LARCENY

On March 14 at approximately 6:50 p.m., Officer Sokphannareth Chea was dispatched to 940 Quaker Lane for a report of a stolen license plate.

Upon arrival he met with the complainant who stated he parked his car at his daughter’s apartment at 4 p.m. on March 14, and when he returned around 6 p.m. he discovered that his front and rear New Hampshire license plates were missing.

A written statement was completed by the car’s owner, and the license plates were entered as stolen with the DMV.

STOLEN POCKETBOOK

Officer Jacob Elderkin was dispatched to the West Shore Hair Salon on March 15 at approximately 5 p.m. for a report of a stolen pocket book.

Officer Elderkin spoke with the victim, who stated she was at work at the salon when she put her purse on the floor and went outside to smoke a cigarette. She then returned to work and went about her day. At the end of her shift, she noticed that her purse was gone.

Contained in the purse were her driver’s and hairdresser’s licenses, assorted credit and debit cards, four wallets, and her marriage certificate. She indicated that she wished to press charges if a suspect is found. There are no suspects at this time, and the victim stated she is very familiar with all of her clients and does not believe that on is responsible for the theft.

ANOTHER STOLEN POCKETBOOK

On March 15 at approximately 8:30 p.m., Officer Timothy Lipka met with a woman at police headquarters who stated that her purse was stolen in the parking lot of Five Below on Quaker Lane.

The woman said that she was in the parking lot around 4:15 p.m., and dropped her purse on the ground outside of her vehicle and noticed that it was gone approximately 15 minutes later. She described the bag as pink with black handles and a metal bow like symbol on it.

A witness who was with the woman stated that they saw a dark colored 4x4 pickup truck with an extended cab park next to their car, and believes they may have taken the bag. Inside was $70 cash, a Rhode Island license and other assorted items. There are currently no suspects, but the woman does wish to press charges if one if found.