Published in the April 6, 2020 edition.
WAKEFIELD — A Richardson Avenue woman called police at about 3 p.m. on Friday to report vandalism to her car. The woman said that all four tires on her 2013 Ford Edge had been slashed while the car was parked in the rear of her apartment building. She was unsure of when the vandalism occurred as she had not used the car in several days, police said.
The matter is under investigation.
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Just before 10 p.m. on Friday, a local woman called police and claimed that a downtown business owner had intentionally put crushed red peppers on the sidewalk in front of the store to harm her dog because the dog had been urinating in front of the store. Police checked the area and found nothing on the sidewalk.
The dog owner called police again at about 9:45 a.m. Saturday morning wishing to discuss the issue further. Police advised the woman to avoid interaction with the business owner and to not let her dog relieve itself on private property. The woman admitted that she did not see anyone placing the pepper on the sidewalk.
The owner of the business denied putting anything on the sidewalk and was advised by police to avoid interactions with the dog owner.
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Just after 10 a.m. on Saturday, staff at the Lakeside Inn on North Avenue called police to report an unresponsive man in one of the guest rooms. The 35-year-old Malden man was taken by ambulance to Melrose-Wakefield Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police said that no drugs were found in the room. The matter remains under investigation.
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At about 4:15 on Saturday afternoon, a caller reported that an elderly man in a 1990s model Lincoln had jumped the curb and may have grazed a pole at the intersection of Main and Nahant streets. The car was last seen heading north on Main Street. The vehicle was gone when police arrived and no damage to poles in the area was observed by police.
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At about 4:30 on Saturday afternoon, police spoke to a large group of lacrosse players on Walton Field at the Galvin Middle School and advised them of the new rules about gathering in groups.
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At about 4:45 p.m. on Saturday, police spoke to another group that was gathering at Mapleway Park in Greenwood.
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At about 6 p.m. on Saturday, a group on the High School property was advised that the property was closed.
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The Fire Department responded to 34 calls over the weekend, of which 25 were for medical aid.
• At about 3 p.m. on Saturday, the Fire Department went to an Elm Street home after the resident reported a large amount of oil leaking from the tank in the basement. Firefighters did what they could to control the leak until the oil company could get there.
• At about 12:45 a.m. on Sunday, a Wakefield Fire crew was sent to Saugus to assist in fighting a fire on Laurel Street in that community.
• Firefighters went to a Del Carmine Street address at about 8:30 last night after an odor of gas was reported in the building. The Municipal Gas & Light Department also responded. The odor was traced to a minor leak in a heating unit.
