Sting Nets Two GPS Thieves at Local Hotel

The theft of electronic devices from parked motor vehicles is occurring at an alarming rate all across the commonwealth. Thieves target GPS units, laptops, iPods, cell phones, and anything else of value to support their drug addiction. In an effort to stem the tide against such thefts, Burlington Police detectives and members of the Vice/Narcotics Unit recently conducted a sting operation at a local hotel. This particular hotel was chosen after consultation with the department’s crime analysis unit. Information provided by patrol officers was analyzed to establish a pattern and time frame for the detectives to utilize in planning the sting.

A bait vehicle with a GPS unit attached to the dashboard was placed in the parking lot. Management of the hotel supplied a room from which officers made observations below for suspicious activity. Detectives monitored the bait vehicle from unmarked cars while communicating with the lookout.

After several hours of surveillance, two men parked their car next to the bait vehicle after noticing the GPS unit. They walked throughout the parking lot searching for other potential targets. The thieves returned to the bait car, smashed out the window and removed the GPS unit from within. Officers quickly moved in and made the arrest. Several electronic devices were recovered from the suspects' vehicle including a laptop, three GPS units and two cell phones. Those devices had been stolen earlier from hotel parking lots along the Route 128 corridor. Detectives were able to track down the victims and return them to their very appreciative owners.

The Burlington Police Department intends to conduct similar stings in the future. We encourage citizens to remain cognizant of any suspicious activity and report it immediately to the police. We also recommend removing electronic items from your vehicle or placing them in the trunk whenever leaving the car unattended.

Officer Soda Earns Exceptional Service Award

On December 10, Officer William Soda was named a recipient of NEMLEC's annual Exceptional Service Award. NEMLEC is the acronym for the North Eastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council. NEMLEC is a regional consortium comprised of fifty police agencies stretching from Gloucester to Watertown, and from Somerville to Littleton.

Officer Soda earned his award through his diligent work in developing and implementing technology solutions for NEMLEC. While he has accomplished many tasks, his primary contribution this year was to implement the software benefits provided by SharePoint.

SharePoint is a product that allows users - in this case the NEMLEC member police departments - to share information quickly and easily. Photos, videos and reports can all be shared on the system, in real-time, which can greatly enhance an agency's ability to identify suspects, and to identify crime patterns and trends. Investigators in one community can easily sift through reports filed in other communities to identify commonalities between suspects and crimes.

Police have traditionally been restricted by artificial city/town boundaries when investigating crime - something that criminals are not restricted by. Through the use of SharePoint, communities no longer have this restriction and can identify related crimes occurring in other jurisdictions.

Officer Soda, along with Sergeant Greg Katz of the Billerica Police Department, were the two catalysts that moved this project to reality.

We congratulate Officer Soda on his excellent achievement!

BPD Serves Up Holiday Luncheon for Seniors

On Monday, December 8, volunteers from the Burlington Police Department served up a holiday feast for local seniors at our annual Senior Holiday Luncheon. A full course of turkey, stuffing, potatoes, squash and dessert were among the goodies dished out during this annual event.

Officers Steve Cross and Keith Sheppard facilitated the event and were supported by a cast of volunteers from the police department, including Cathy Devaney, Rosemarie Tieri, Officer Lyn Reynolds, Officer Ed Mackey, Lieutenant Steve O'Meara and Chief Fran Hart. Marge MacDonald from the Council on Aging also played a major role in organizing the event.

Besides dinner, guests enjoyed Christmas carols sung by seven of the volunteers' kids. The kids also served as waitresses, raffle-ticket-callers and as part of the clean-up crew. They were the real stars of the show.

Raffle prizes were drawn and included gift certificates, books, games and more.

The event is paid for by the Burlington Police Patrolmen's Association.

Police Department Awarded Underage Alcohol Enforcement Grant

The Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security's Highway Safety Division has selected the Burlington Police Department to receive nearly $5,000 in funding as part of their Underage Alcohol Enforcement Program.

The money is available for local departments to use in their activities designed to decrease access to alcohol by underage youth. These activities include compliance checks, party patrols and surveillance patrols.

During a compliance check, we send a person under 21 into a retail liquor store or restaurant in an attempt to purchase alcohol with no identification. We follow strict guidelines for this activity as prescribed by the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission. In a nutshell, it means that we can't use any deception to trick a server or seller into providing alcohol to the underage operative. What we are really testing here is the server's willingness to ask for identification for anyone that remotely seems underage. Since the operative is often 19 or 20 years old, there should never be any question about asking for identification.

A party patrol is a dedicated patrol for breaking up underage drinking parties and for enforcement of underage drinking laws.

Surveillance patrols, in conjunction with the other programs, involve surveillance in areas of suspected underage drinking, such as sporting events or in parking lots and these also result in enforcement of underage drinking laws.

The grant period runs through May 31, 2009.