Police Log: Stolen Vehicle Recovered in Georgia, Argument Between Co-Workers Escalates

The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department.

Arrests

Nov. 29, 9:43 p.m.: Two employees at the UPS facility on Coolidge Avenue got into an argument about a woman while in the break room. Their break ended and one of the men headed toward his work station and the second, Jesse Romero Velasquez, followed him. The argument continued and Velasquez took out a pocket knife and made stabbing motions toward the other man. He did not make contact with him. The two got into a physical altercation but there were no injuries. Police spoke to multiple witnesses and placed Jesse Romero Velasquez, 21, of Brighton, under arrest on a charge of assault with a dangerous weapon.

Dec. 5, 6:11 a.m.: Police went to Vero Health Center on Coolidge Hill Road for an investigation and while there they encountered a man who was wanted on a warrant. Officers arrested Darrell G. Holmes, of Jamaica Plain, on a warrant from Roxbury District Court for indecent exposure.

Incidents

Nov. 29, 12:26 p.m.: A Hillside Road resident got in his 2oo3 Honda Element and when he started it the vehicle was very loud. He took it to a mechanic who found the catalytic converter had been stolen. The owner believes the theft took place between Nov. 27 and 29. The replacement cost is between $1,000 and $2,000.

Nov. 29, 6:34 p.m.: A Nyack Street resident received an alert at about 5:45 p.m., that someone was attempting to get into the person’s home. The video showed someone approach the front door, open the exterior door and try the doorknob to the interior door. The person did not get in. Police are not sure if the person was trying to enter the home, or was a solicitor or someone leafleting. The person is described as a light-skinned man, wearing a winter hat, a turtleneck, a winter coat, jeans and work boots. Police looked in the area but did not see anyone fitting the description.

Nov. 30, 9:33 p.m.: A man came into Best Buy trying to purchase a Macbook Pro, but he did not have enough money. The sales associate placed the laptop behind a counter while the person waited for someone to bring extra money. The man hung around the store for several hours and at one point he knocked over a display. It was not clear if he did it intentionally or not. While staff picked up the items from the display they realized the laptop was missing from the customer service counter. Police investigated and found that the man lived at the Vero Health Center in Watertown. Officers spoke to the man and he said he had given the laptop to someone else. Police gave him 24 hours to return the laptop before filing charges. When they followed up the next day, the man did not have the laptop. The 55-year-old man from Watertown was summoned to Waltham District Court on a charge of larceny over $1,200.

Dec. 1, 9:39 a.m.: Peter Fuller Motors reported that one of their rental vehicles had been rented on Oct. 28 for three days but it had not been returned. Police contacted the renter, who said that he was in Georgia with the car, and he would return it. He did not return it by the day he said, so police put out a summons for the 32-year-old Georgia man for failure to return leased or rented property. The vehicle was reported stolen to a national database, and on Dec. 2 the vehicle was recovered at 3 a.m. by police in Pooler, Ga. The driver was placed under arrest for larceny of a motor vehicle.

Dec 1, 4 p.m.: Police went to Wheeler Court after a resident reported being scammed. The woman received a call from someone claiming to be an Amazon employee who told her about a suspicious purchase on her account. She gave the caller access to her computer and the person purchased two $200 gift cards. Later the resident realized it was a scam, so she contacted Amazon, which confirmed the caller was not one of their employees.

Dec 2, 2:45 p.m.: A vehicle was vandalized on Winsor Avenue. The owner said that overnight from Nov. 29 to the 30th, his 2019 Cadillac Escalade had been vandalized. The cover of the driver’s door handle was broken off, and the locking mechanism was damaged. The vehicle was not entered.

Dec. 3, 1 p.m.: A Forest Street resident reported that the catalytic converter had been taken from a Honda Element. Prior to calling, the resident heard a loud noise coming from the car and noticed a piece of the vehicle had been cut out. It occurred between Nov. 27 and 28.

Dec. 5, 9:30 p.m.: Someone walking their dog found several boxes outside an apartment building on Main Street. The person called the police. All the boxes came from another apartment building on Main Street, and were addressed to five different people. Only one of the boxes had missing property. The rest of the items were recovered at the scene. Missing were two shock brackets for a Ford Fusion valued at $50 each.