DWI Crashes, Attempted Car Burglaries, Fraud Reported In Westfield

WESTFIELD, NJ — DWI crashes, attempted car burglaries, and fraud were reported in the recent police blotter.

Westfield Police Blotter – June 23 to June 29:

On June 23 at 4:05 a.m.: Officers responded to a single motor vehicle crash in the area of the 500 block of Springfield Avenue. Officers on the scene conducted a crash investigation, which resulted in the arrest of Jose Solis-Mendez, 27, Florham Park, for driving while intoxicated. Solis-Mendez was taken to Westfield Police Department Headquarters and subsequently released to a sober adult after being processed.

On June 24 at 1:11 a.m.: A resident reported an attempted motor vehicle burglary occurred on the 300 block of Orenda Circle. Specifically, unknown suspects tried to gain entry into the victim's vehicle, which was parked and locked in their driveway. The suspects failed to gain entry to the vehicle and subsequently left the area. Suspects are described as one man wearing a dark-colored hooded sweatshirt with a white Nike Jordan logo and one man wearing a dark-colored hooded sweatshirt with jeans.

On June 24 at 2:52 a.m.: A resident reported an attempted motor vehicle burglary that had just occurred on the 900 block of Stevens Avenue. Specifically, the resident reported a man dressed in a white colored T-shirt and gray colored shorts tried to gain entry into his vehicle while parked and locked in his driveway. Westfield Police Department personnel responded to the area and subsequently located Sean Smith, 48, Belleville, who matched the above suspect description. After further investigation, Smith was placed under arrest for attempt/burglary, criminal trespass, and disorderly conduct. He was processed for the above charges at Westfield Police Department Headquarters. After being processed, Smith was turned over to Somerville Police Department personnel for an outstanding criminal warrant.

On June 26 at 1:14 p.m.: A resident of the 700 block of Fairacres Avenue reported an incident of fraud. According to the resident, he received a phone call from an unknown suspect(s) who pretended to be a representative from the fraud department at his financial institution. While speaking with the suspect(s), the resident granted them remote access to his computer. After several phone conversations, the suspect(s) instructed the resident to withdraw $24,000 from his bank account. Thereafter, the suspect directed the resident to purchase $10,000 of Bitcoin and deposit it at a designated ATM machine. Once the $10,000 deposit was made, the resident realized that he was being scammed and reported this incident to the police. Total monetary loss resulting from this fraudulent activity is $10,000.

On June 26 at 1:28 p.m.: Raziel Mancebo, 30, Scotch Plains, was arrested pursuant to a motor vehicle stop on W. North Ave. and Clark St. on the strength of an outstanding warrant out of Cranford Municipal Court for $500. He was released on his own recognizance at the scene pending court appearance at the Cranford Municipal Court.

On June 26 at 3:06 p.m.: A Wychview Dr. resident reported being a victim of fraud. The victim stated he found a social media advertisement for the sale of a motorcycle. After contacting the owner, the victim agreed on a sale price and a pickup location. Sometime after the transaction was finalized, the victim learned that the motorcycle which he purchased was stolen. The stolen motorcycle was seized by police and will be returned to its rightful owner.

On June 27 at 1:12 p.m.: A resident of the 500 block of East North Avenue reported being the victim of fraud. An unknown person used their identity to establish an account with Elizabethtown Gas at an unknown time. There are no suspects.

On June 29 at 1:15 a.m.: Officers responded to a single motor vehicle crash in the area of North Chestnut Street and East Broad Street. A crash investigation was conducted which resulted in the arrest of the driver, Ronan McCoid, 20, Cranford, for driving while intoxicated. McCoid was taken to Westfield Police Department headquarters where he was processed and released to a sober adult.

On June 29 at 2 p.m.: A resident of the 500 block of Mountain Avenue reported being a victim of fraud. Specifically, the victim stated that her previous temporary New Jersey vehicle registration plate was fraudulently displayed on a suspect vehicle, which resulted in the victim receiving around $122 in EZ-Pass tickets in the mail. The victim also stated that she had disposed of the temporary registration and believed that the unknown suspect may have made a duplicate or fake copy.

On June 29 at 4 p.m.: A subject at the 100 block of Central Avenue reported being a victim of fraud. Specifically, the victim stated that their pedigree information was fraudulently used to open a cell phone plan. The victim then received a collections request for $310 for an unpaid cell phone bill, which they had no knowledge of.

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