Police Report: Three Cars Stolen: Police Urge Residents to Take Steps to Prevent Crimes

Stolen cars: A Reimer Road resident reported his 2010 black Mercedes Benz S-50, valued at $50,000, had been stolen from his driveway April 25. The car had been left unlocked, with the keys inside.

Another Reimer Road resident reported her 2018 gray BMW sedan, valued at $90,000, had been stolen from her driveway April 25. It is not known if the car was also unlocked with its keys inside.

On April 26, a Hampton Road woman reported her 2017 Mercedes Benz had been stolen from her driveway overnight. It was valued at $34,500. According to police, New York City Police later discovered the car and arrested two suspects. The suspects were charged with criminal possession of stolen property. Scarsdale’s investigation into all details related to this matter remains active and ongoing.

Because of increased car thefts and car break-ins in Scarsdale and other area jurisdictions, police issued the following crime prevention tips to help residents keep their belongings safe. Police advise residents to use motion sensing exterior lights and to keep the exterior house perimeter and driveway well lit, as even the smallest light may be a deterrent to offenders, Another tip is to consider investing in a camera surveillance system and use signs or stickers to make it clear that your home, driveway and property is protected by video surveillance. Police urge residents to always lock their cars while parked on the street or in driveways and to never leave the key fob or keys inside the car while unattended. Many cars are equipped with a feature that causes side mirrors to fold in when the car is locked using the key fob. When offenders see a car with its mirrors folded in, they immediately know the car is locked. A majority of car thefts and car break-ins, instead, involve unlocked vehicles. To further avoid crimes of opportunity, never leave valuables inside unattended cars, especially when these valuables – such as handbags, wallets, bags, electronic devices, phones and GPS systems – are in plain sight. When parking in public areas, chose well-lit places. To further help in preventing these crimes, police urge all residents to be vigilant and aware of their surroundings and to practice being an observant neighbor. Police urge residents to immediately notify police about any unusual or suspicious activity. It might assist in preventing or interrupting a crime.

Stolen
A Chateaux Circle resident reported someone stole package delivered to her building’s front vestibule on April 22, removed a pair of $179 jeans she had ordered from Nordstrom and then returned the empty package to the vestibule April 23.
On April 24, a caller reported his black Jamis bicycle and blue helmet had been stolen from the bike rack on East Parkway. The caller left the scene before police could follow up with him. After leaving a few messages, police reached the caller. The caller said he was too busy to file a formal report and he would just buy a new bicycle.

Attempted car break-in
On April 26, a Hampton Road resident reported someone attempted to break into his locked, parked car overnight, while the car was in his driveway.

ID theft
On April 24, a Franklin Road resident reported $466.99 in funds had been stolen from her account by a fraudulent Western Union money transfer. She the resident told police an old college friend had contacted her in September 2019. The friend asked her for money, and the resident agreed to send her $100. After money was wired to the friend’s account, the friend contacted the resident and asked her to cancel the money transfer and instead send the money to the friend’s boyfriend’s account – because the friend alleged she did not have a valid ID and would not be able to pick up the money. The resident complied, cancelled the original transaction and sent money to the boyfriend’s account. According to the resident, the friend has continued to contact her to ask for more money over the past few months. The resident declined to send additional money. Then, on March 20, the resident noticed a fraudulent Western Union money transfer on her credit card statement. Investigation revealed the money had been sent to the friend’s original account. The resident notified her bank, and the bank said they could not reverse the Western Union transfer without a police report.

Mail fraud
On April 22, an Axtell Road resident reported receiving a letter from his bank indicating that his address had been changed on multiple accounts. The resident said theScarsdale residents delivered greetings to patients at Phelps Memorial Hospital. address change request occurred without his permission. The resident corrected the matter with his bank, and he attempted – unsuccessfully - to reach the Post Office for further follow-up.

Hypodermic needles
On April 26, a delivery driver informed a Johnson Road man that there were hypodermic needles on the road in front of his house. The man informed police who went to the scene to investigate. There, patrol found approximately 15 capped and unused Easy Touch hypodermic needles in the road. Patrol placed the needles in a Sharps container and took them to Scarsdale Volunteer Ambulance Corps for proper disposal.

Death
On April 26, a 72-year-old Nelson Road man died at home.

Construction work
Police warned a job foreman at a Gatehouse Road construction site that only one worker was permitted to be working on the job at a time April 20. The foreman said he would have extra workers pick up their tools and leave the job site to comply with NYS orders.

On April 12, police advised five workers power washing a Griffen Avenue house that they were in violation of NYS orders that prohibited more than one worker on a job site at a time. The workers promptly collected their equipment and left the scene.

A Herkimer Road resident reported that a neighbor on the same street was installing a basketball court on private property, involving several workers who were not respecting NYS orders, April 22. Police went to the scene and spoke with the workers and homeowner, explaining NYS orders regarding work. The homeowner said the installation of the court would be postponed, and workers promptly collected their tools and left the scene.

On April 25, police told a Fenimore Road construction crew that they needed to obtain an “essential work” permit from the Village and that only one worker would be allowed to be at work at a time. The crew ceased work and left.

Closed
Using a public address speaker from inside a patrol car, police notified a group of people who had gathered to play basketball at Greenacres School that school grounds were closed April 20. The people promptly dispersed.

A Hampton Road woman reported a man was using public playground equipment for exercise across the street from her house April 21. Police informed him that all public parks, playground, fields and schools were closed. He apologized and left.

Social distancing
On April 21, a caller reported a gathering of people in cars parked on Greendale Road. Police arrived on scene and observed multiple youth outside of cars, maintaining distances of six feet apart. The youths said they were having a birthday party. Patrol admonished them and said social gatherings were not permitted under NYS stay-at-home orders. All youths left the scene without incident.

A caller complained about a group of kids riding bikes on Scarsdale Avenue and Popham Road – not practicing social distancing and not wearing masks – April 22.

Police spoke with the kids about NYS orders regarding wearing masks in public and maintaining social distancing. The kids dispersed.

Police admonished a group of youths on River Road, who had gathered to socialize without following social distancing orders and without wearing face masks April 23. The youths were dispersed without incident.

Food delivery
A Madison Road reported two vehicles were parked outside her house for at least 15 minutes April 21. Patrol went to the street and observed a wood fired pizza food truck on the street. The employee said the food truck had been hired by local residents to fulfill pizza delivery orders in the neighborhood. The employee said there were two delivery drivers who were taking orders to houses, so residents did not have to come to the truck to pick up orders. The employee apologized for parking in the street and moved into a driveway, with the homeowner’s permission. The employee said he was almost done fulfilling all orders and would be leaving soon.

Trees
A Fox Meadow Road resident reported a tree fell on his house and may have taken down electrical lines April 21. Police arrived on scene and assessed the situation. A large tree was observed to have fallen on the resident’s house and caused damage by puncturing a hole in the roof. No one was injured, nor were any electrical wires disturbed. Firefighters arrived and shut power to sections of the house to make sure it remained safe. Police and firefighters advised the resident about temporary safeguards and suggested the resident call his insurance company. The tree was not located on Village property.

On April 21, a Greenacres Avenue resident reported that a neighbor’s tree was in danger of falling on his house. Patrol informed the neighbor of the resident’s concerns and reported the matter to the Village engineering department.

Cars and roadways
A caller reported a woman sitting in a parked car for about an hour near the intersection of Heathcote and Stratton roads April 21. Police spoke with the woman inside the car. She said she had pulled over to make a phone call. Everything was in good order.

Patrol removed fallen branches from Crane Road April 21.

The highway department was notified about pipe debris on Popham Road April 22. Highway workers responded and removed the debris.

A car sustained a flat tire on East Parkway April 22. The driver asked to leave the car overnight in order to arrange for a special flat bed tow the following day. Police extended the driver a courtesy to leave the car securely and legally parked on the street overnight.

Police observed a displaced storm drain on Edgewood Road and moved it back into place April 23.

On April 25, police notified the highway department that an empty white bucket had been left by the side of Post Road.

A landscaping truck struck a sanitation Cushman on Secor Road April 25.

Patrol helped a pedestrian cross Weaver Street April 26.
Two car accidents were reported in the Village this week.

Civil matter
A Cohawney Road resident reported receiving unwanted calls from a landscaper regarding a dispute over an alleged balance due April 20. The landscaper allegedly threatened to contact the resident’s wife or his employer if the alleged balance was not resolved. The resident told the landscaper he did not want to be contacted from him again and he advised he was calling the police to document the matter.

Animals
A Carman Road resident reported that a neighbor’s cat leaves dead animals on his property April 20. Police spoke with the cat’s owner, who said he would try to prevent the cat from continuing such behavior in the future.

Village code
At 9:47 a.m., April 26, police advised a landscaper he was prohibited from starting work and creating noise before 10 a.m. on weekends. The landscaper stopped his work and said he would comply with Village code.

Lost and found
On April 23, a Kingston Road resident reported losing her non-driver ID in Scarsdale.

A passerby found a Discover card on Overhill Road and gave it to police April 23. Police called Discover customer service, and a representative reported that the owner of the card had already reported it as lost. The rep advised police to destroy the card.

Firefighters
According to Fire Chief James Seymour, firefighters responded to 20 incidents during the reporting period. He shared the following incident details.

On April 20, firefighters stood by for Con Edison after discovering a gas leak in the sanitary sewer system on Brookline Road.

On April 21, firefighters isolated a fallen electrical wire that was sparking in a tree and on the ground near the library on Olmsted Road. Con Edison was notified. Police closed the road until Con Edison repaired the situation.

On April 22, a 53-foot refrigerator tractor-trailer struck the Mamaroneck Road overpass while traveling on the southbound Hutchinson River Parkway. The impact caused the trailer to collapse down, and the diesel tank on trailer hit the ground and ruptured. The driver proceeded to drive approximately one-half-mile more, spreading diesel fuel along the right lane and shoulder. Westchester County Police were already on scene when firefighters arrived. Firefighters started to make dams out of speedy dry to contain the running fuel on roadway shoulder. Firefighters closed both southbound lanes to deal with the incident safely. Contact was made with appropriate environmental and spill cleanup agencies that responded to mitigate the incident. A commercial towing company was called to remove the damaged truck from the parkway.

On April 25, firefighters assisted with a car accident on the Bronx River Parkway.

This report covering police and fire department activity from April 20-26 has been compiled from official information.

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