Police/Fire

Watertown Man Arrested on Charge of Acting as Unregistered Agent for Iran

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The Department of Justice announced the arrest of a Watertown man on charges of acting as an unregistered agent for the Iranian government. Kaveh Lotfolah Afrasiabi, 63 of Watertown, allegedly gave propaganda to members of Congress and the media, and has received money from an account linked to Iran’s United Nations mission. The charges were unsealed in a Brooklyn Federal Court, but Afrasiabi was arrested on Monday by the FBI and was due to be arraigned in Boston Federal Court on Tuesday. According to a MassLive.com story, Afrasiabi entered the U.S. in 1973 and became a lawful permanent resident in 1984. He has taught at several universities — including full-time at Tehran University, Boston University and Bentley College, and as a visiting scholar at Harvard and University of California, Berkeley — and graduated from University of Massachusetts for undergrad and got his masters degree and doctorate in political science from Boston University.

Around Town

Boston Marathon Bomber Appeal Coming Up; Court Docs Show Brother Suspected in Waltham Murders

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The case of convicted Boston Marathon Bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev will be in court soon to appeal the conviction, and recently unsealed documents related to the case show that the FBI believes his older brother Tamerlan was a prime suspect in the killing of three men in Waltham in 2011. Dzhokhar’s appeal of the death sentence for his role in the Boston Marathon Bombings is scheduled to go before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on Dec. 12. The Boston Globe reported that court documents unsealed before the appeal implicate Tamerlan Tsarnaev with the the killings of three men in Waltham — Brendan Mess, 25, Erik H. Weissman, 31, and Raphael M. Teken, 37. Tamerlan died after the shootout with Watertown Police at the intersection of Dexter Avenue and Laurel Street.

Police/Fire

More Details on Massage Parlor Sting in Watertown

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Last week, the Watertown Police conducted an investigation into illegal activities at massage parlors in town, and made four prostitution arrests at four locations. The sting was broader than the four massage parlors and involved undercover police officers. The investigation was a joint one between the WPD and the FBI’s Boston Division Child Exploitation-Human Trafficking Task Force. Police sent undercover officers into the six massage parlors in a coordinated sting on Friday, Nov. 8, said Watertown Police Lt. James O’Connor.

FBI

Four Arrested on Prostitution Charges After Joint WPD/FBI Human Trafficking Sting

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Law enforcement made four arrests on prostitution charges at Watertown massage parlors after a sting by the Watertown Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The Watertown Police sent out the following press release:

On Friday, November 8, 2019, the Watertown Police Detective Division assisted by the FBI Boston Division Child Exploitation-Human Trafficking Task Force and members of the Massachusetts Division of Professional Licensure Investigations conducted an undercover operation of massage parlors in Watertown. The goal of the operation was to identify establishments that do not comply with local, state and federal regulations, as well as to identify potential minor and adult victims of human trafficking. These inspections resulted in the arrest of the following individuals, all on charges related to sexual conduct for a fee:

Worarat Soontronwatee (age 30) of Malden arrested at Season Therapy, 12 Belmont St. Sandy Ferchiou (age 51) of Boston, arrested at Sukhothai, 8 Riverside St.

FBI

Federal Prostitution Sting Nets Three in Watertown

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Three people face charges related to prostitution after being caught in a sting run by the FBI with the help of the Watertown Police. On the afternoon of June 6, undercover law enforcement had suspected prostitutes come to a hotel in Watertown, and arrested those involved, including the “pimps.” Others were not arrested but were given services to help get out of prostitution. Police arrested a 24-year-old woman, later identified as Keisha Meneide of Trenton, N.J., on charges of sexual conduct for a fee, said Watertown Police Lt. James O’Connor. A Rhode Island couple was also arrested in association with Meneide.

Police/Fire

Watertown Resident Completes FBI National Youth Academy

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Hanna MacDonald, left, completed the FBI National Academy Youth Leadership Program. She is shown with her parents, Tara and Brian MacDonald, and retired Watertown PoliceDet. Peter Seminara, who attended the FBI National Academy. The Watertown Police sent their congratulations to Watertown resident Hanna MacDonald, who completed the FBI National Academy Youth Leadership Program. 

The Watertown Police Department released this statement on its Facebook page:

Congratulations to Watertown resident and Lexington Christian Academy student, Hanna MacDonald for attending and completing the FBI National Academy Youth Leadership Program last summer. Hanna was recently recognized for her outstanding achievement.The FBI NA Youth Leadership Program is an intense program of classroom study, physical challenges, guest lectures and leadership experiences, that takes place at the FBI Academy in Quantico, VA.

FBI

Watertown Police Lieutenant Returns from FBI Training With New Knowledge and a Brick

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For decades, Watertown Police Lt. James O’Connor has had the goal of attending the FBI’s National Academy, and this year he finally got the chance to be one of the select few members of law enforcement to attend the course. After the intense 10-week program one of the most prize possessions he returned home with was a brick covered in yellow paint sitting on a wooden stand. Just one percent of the nation’s local, county and state law enforcement officers get the chance to attend the National Academy at the FBI Training Academy in Quantico, Virginia. O’Connor was part of a class of 223 people from 48 states and 18 countries outside the U.S.

O’Connor, a Watertown native, first heard about the National Academy when he was a young police. “I have a friend who went through it, and I went to visit him (at the Academy) in 1997,” O’Connor said.