Police/Fire

See the Watertown Students Who Made Minuteman’s Honor Roll

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Minuteman High School vocational technical school in Lexington. The following information was provided by Minuteman High School:

Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical High School has released the names of the students who were named to High Honor Roll and Honor Roll for the third quarter of the academic year. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Term 3 was extended into early May. The 132 students on High Honor Roll and 128 students on Honor Roll reside in the following communities: Acton, Arlington, Belmont, Bolton, Boxborough, Brookline, Burlington, Carlisle, Concord, Dover, Lancaster, Lexington, Lincoln, Needham, Newton, Reading, Stow, Sudbury, Wakefield, Waltham, Watertown, Westford, Weston, Wilmington, and Woburn. WATERTOWN 

High Honors 

Rouaa Alwaz, Biotechnology, Grade 12Mahnoor Bibi, Health Assisting, Grade 9Zoha Bibi, Health Assisting, Grade 11Dayane Coutinho, Plumbing, Grade 11Izadora Karla Goncalves, Health Assisting, Grade 11Saleena Khan, Health Assisting, Grade 9Elizabeth Linarte, Biotechnology, Grade 12Lilyrose Love, Health Assisting, Grade 11Autumn Sivitis-Camara, Early Education, Grade 11Gabriel Tulipano, Programming and Web Development, Grade 11

 Honors 

Maria DeFreitas, Early Education, Grade 11David Doyle, Advanced Manufacturing, Grade 10Shane Gleason, Health Assisting, Grade 9Fahad Khan, Programming and Web Development, Grade 12Connor Mackenzie, Programming and Web Development, Grade 9Vasiliki Marandianos, Culinary Arts, Grade 12Ava Martin, Design and Visual Communications, Grade 9Michael McNamara, Carpentry, Grade 12Theodore Surenian, Programming and Web Development, Grade 11

See the entire Term 3 Honor Roll list by clicking here.

Fire Department

COVID-19 Impacted Town’s Budget, Details of the Police, Fire Budgets Presented

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Watertown Town Hall

The COVID-19 pandemic will have a major impact on Watertown’s budget, Town Manager Michel Driscoll told the Town Council Tuesday night. He also gave details about how the Police and Fire departments use their funding. Driscoll’s presentation (see the documents here) gave more details about Watertown’s Fiscal 2021 Budget the day before the Town Council will have the chance to ask questions about each Town department’s budget. Two weeks ago, Driscoll presented the $152.4 million budget proposal which included no lay offs, despite the loss of about $4 million related to the COVID-19 pandemic. State Aid is forecast to be down $2.6 million as a result of the impact of the pandemic on the Massachusetts economy, Driscoll said.

Police/Fire

Police Log: Bikes Stolen from Storage Area, Attempted Scam Involving Dog for Sale

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The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department:

Arrests

None

Incidents

For the second week in a row, the Watertown Police Department received 17 reports of attempted unemployment scams. The residents said they had not applied for unemployment benefits but received a letter about getting benefits. 

June 8, 10:02 a.m.: Two bicycles were reported stolen from Tufts Health Plan. Security looked at security footage which showed two people go into the Tufts parking garage on Grove Street, went to the locked bicycle storage area and one of the people climbed over the fence around the bike storage. The person pressed a self-release button and left with two bikes. The two were seen bicycling on Mt. Auburn Street three minutes later.

Police/Fire

Watertown Police Accepting Applications for Citizens Police Academy

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For the 30th time, the Watertown Police Department will be hosting the Watertown Citizens Police Academy. Watertown Police Chief Michael Lawn sent out the following information:

NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS! 10 WEEK PROGRAM – Fall 2020

WHERE: Watertown Police Station

WHEN: Wednesdays from 6-9 p.m.

WHAT: Watertown Police Officers share and exchange information designed to educate residents with police operations, policies & procedures and community policing programs of the police department. TOPICS INCLUDE:Constitutional Law, Motor Vehicle Law, Community Policing/Programs, K-9Unit, Use of Force, Domestic Violence, Patrol Procedures, ALICE, DefensiveTactics & Courtroom Procedures, Crime Scene Investigation, NarcoticEnforcement and a discussion relative to the President’s Task Force on 21stCentury Policing. Students will have the opportunity to participate in ride-alongs with officers on patrol and tour the police station.

Police/Fire

Police Log: Unemployment Scam, Man Throws Bottle at Car

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The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department. Arrests

None

Incidents

Between June 1 and June 7, the Watertown Police Department received 17 reports of an unemployment scheme. The residents report that they got letters about their unemployment applications, but they had never filed for benefits. Unemployment fraud can be reported to the Department of Unemployment Assistance by clicking here. June 1, 9:01 a.m.: A Westland Road resident discovered that someone broke into her 2010 Lexus SUV.

Police/Fire

Police Log: Man Arrested for OUI Suspected of Dealing Drugs, Food Delivery Taken

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The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department. Arrests

May 26, 2:38 a.m.: An officer encountered a Jeep sitting in the intersection of Arsenal and School streets with the motor running and brake lights on. The driver had his head back and his eyes closed, and appeared to be sleeping. Officers knocked on the window for several minutes and eventually woke him. When the driver awoke, he was unaware of his surroundings or where he was.

Police/Fire

Police Log: Man Scammed for Over $20K, Plaque Stolen from Veteran’s Grave

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The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department. Arrests

None

Incidents

May 18 3:06 p.m.: Police were contacted by an Standish Road resident and her daughter after they found unusual activity on her bank account. She received a notice from their bank about several pre-authorized withdrawals from the account, and an estimated $30,000 had been taken and deposited into an unknown PayPal account. The account has been frozen by the bank and the family. They were able to recover approximately $22,000.

Community Policing

Watertown Police Release Statement About George Floyd’s Death

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Watertown Police Station

The men and women of the Watertown Police Department are deeply disturbed by the death of Mr. George Floyd.  We share the public’s outrage and disappointment, and will not let the actions of a few officers tear away the trust we share with our great community. 

Please see Chief Lawn’s response to emails he received concerning this horrific incident. Good Afternoon-

The men and women of the Watertown Police Department are deeply disturbed by the actions of those police officers in Minneapolis. I personally was sick to my stomach watching that video. I am very proud of the work that the men and women of the WPD do every day. We should not be judged or painted with the same brush by incidents that occur in other states.