Keeping Lowell Safe: Police Beat for April 2019

In April, the Lowell Police Department received 169 calls for service. These included the following:

  • 12 medical calls
  • 16 assists to other agencies
  • 16 total arrests
  • 3 car crashes
  • 2 instances of operating while intoxicated
  • 2 drug-related calls
  • 2 ordinance violations

And here’s a look at a few of these April cases.

Speeding is No Joke

On April Fools’ Day, an officer tried to pull over a vehicle speeding through town at approximately 2am. The vehicle failed to stop and instead took off at 80 miles per hour down the road. The officer discontinued pursuit because of the high speed but followed the car at a distance. It pulled into Amway headquarters to turn around but couldn’t be intercepted. A later review of company security footage was able to identify the car as a silver sedan but the license plate number was not visible.

Playing Hoops Old School

The Lowell Police Department received two calls regarding breaking and entering at an abandoned school. Four teens – one male and three females – apparently arrived in style in a gold Cadillac Escalade to shoot some hoops in the old gym. The son of the building owner confronted the teens who became spooked, lost their swagger and fled in their sweet ride. The police were able to identify the teens, but the owner decided not to press charges. The building has since been secured to prevent any future unauthorized extracurricular activities.

Drunk Driving on a Suspended License

An officer pulled over a vehicle at 11pm for driving in the left hand turn lane. The driver was found to have a blood alcohol content of .11 which is above the legal limit of .08 What’s more, the driver was out on bond from a previous drunk driving incident and did not have a valid license. He was charged with operating while intoxicated and driving without a license.

Domestic Incident Results in Drunk Driving Charge

Police responded to a call of domestic violence. While the suspect had left the scene, he drove up while an officer was taking the report. His blood alcohol content was .15, and he was charged with operating while intoxicated and driving without a license. Prosecutors discharged the domestic violence charge for lack of evidence.

Low Energy Crime

A clerk at a local store observed two subjects stealing Monster and Red Bull energy drinks. Police were called, and the suspects quickly gulped down their ill-gotten gains and dumped the cans in the storm drain. Alas, there was video surveillance of the crime, and the suspects were charged with retail fraud, 3rd degree.

Can’t Hide Behind Grainy Video Footage

Anyone who follows the Lowell Police Department Facebook page knows the police often post video images of suspected shoplifters. Many times, the image quality is poor, and people regularly comment on that. However, Chief Steve Bukala would like you to know that even though the image quality isn’t great, these posts almost always lead to the perpetrator being identified by someone in the community. So if you think you can get away with a crime because of lackluster security cameras, think again.

Drunk Driving in the Afternoon

During a routine patrol, an officer pulled over a woman for a traffic violation at 3:45pm. A breath test was administered as part of the stop, and her blood alcohol content was .18, more than double the legal limit. She was charged with an OWI, high BAC.

Assistance Provided in Drug Case

Detective Lauren assisted with a medical call of a female not breathing. She was found unresponsive in a front year, and two doses of Narcan were administered. The woman regained consciousness and was transported via ambulance to the hospital. For cases like this, the Lowell Police Department has partnered with the non-profit Red Project. Rather than press charges, the case was handed over to the organization so they could make contact with the woman and offer addiction recovery resources.

2 Comments

  1. Ugh the playing hoops paragraph’s forced vernacular is so cringe. Just explain the situation. The rest is just clunky expositions and hard to read. This blog shouldn’t be recommended alongside Lowell Sun in Google news until the quality of writing improves. Be succinct, be clear, be concise.

    • Thanks for the feedback, ACRE. And you’re right that Google shouldn’t be recommending us alongside the Lowell Sun, but that’s because we report on the news in Michigan, not Massachusetts. 🙂

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