Police Use DNA Evidence to Arrest Suspect from 2015 Bank Robbery, Fire on the Tracks

AffekOn Thursday, Jan. 24, police arrested 36 year-old Matthew Affek, of North Road in Bronxville, in connection with a bank robbery that occurred at a village bank in 2015. According to police, on July 18, 2015 at approximately 11:00 am, a male suspect entered Webster Bank, on Popham Road and presented a teller with a note demanding cash. The teller complied with the suspect’s request and gave him some money. The suspect then fled the bank with the cash. Officers who responded to the bank processed the crime scene, interviewed witnesses and collected evidence. The police department’s preliminary investigation included multiple interviews with all bank personnel, customers, witnesses in the area and a review of all available area video camera surveillance. The Scarsdale Police Department’s ongoing investigation eventually focused on Affek as a suspect. The defendant’s DNA was a positive match to evidence left at the scene. While in Mount Vernon, the suspect was taken into custody by Scarsdale detectives on Jan. 24. While being interviewed, Affek admitted to the bank robbery and was charged with Felony Larceny.

Woods Lane Burglary
Motion sensor alarms alerted a homeowner and police that a burglary might be underway at a Woods Lane house at 6:30 p.m., Jan. 24. Officers arrived at the house to check the exterior and noticed a rear sliding glass was broken. They established a perimeter and entered the house. They noticed an alarm box in a second-floor hallway had been ripped from the wall, and the master bedroom was tossed. The homeowner came home and stayed in her car while police checked the house. A canine unit from New Rochelle was called to track the area starting with footprints detected nearby. The dog followed a track to the street, as well as into a Forest Lane yard where the dog turned around near a stream. A flashlight attached to a lanyard was found at the rear of the house, near to where the door had been broken. Police vouchered it as evidence. The homeowner said she would prepare a list of missing items -- mostly watches and jewelry. She estimated a total of $6,000 worth of jewelry was stolen.

Stolen Coat
On Jan. 26, a Church Lane woman reported her black, knee-length coat with fur around the hood, as well as a lanyard with attached house and car keys, was stolen from a coatroom during an event at St. James the Less church. Upon exiting the event, the woman noticed her car had also been illegally entered and tossed, although nothing seemed to be missing.

Reported Larceny
On Jan. 24, the manager of the Popham Road CVS reported a shoplifting suspect had been in the store. The suspect was described as a black, middle-aged man with gray hair, wearing a suit and backpack. He was alleged of stealing 24 containers of an Oil of Olay skincare product valued at $716 total. The manager said the man left the store when the manager noticed him. The man allegedly walked to a car parked on Garth Road, where a woman was waiting, and drove away. A review of video surveillance of the store did not show the man placing any items in his backpack.

Suspicious Activity
A Walworth Avenue resident reported a Chrysler Pacifica van drove into her driveway and stayed there for about 20 minutes before leaving around 4 a.m., Jan. 22. A middle-aged, white man with white hair and a black jacket was driving the car. The incident was captured on video recorded by a Ring home security system. It showed the van entering the driveway, repositioning itself in front of the porch, driving to the back to the driveway and finally leaving. Police examined the house and found no attempts at forced entry. Nothing was reported stolen from the property.

A Paddington Road resident reported seeing three young men in hoodies enter her backyard and leave approximately one minute later around 6 p.m., Jan. 24. The incident was recorded by home surveillance cameras.

Help
At a husband’s request, police checked the welfare of an elderly Seneca Road woman Jan. 22. She was OK and told police a phone system problem had been the cause of her husband not being able to reach her.

At a friend’s request, police checked the welfare of a Kent Road woman Jan. 24. She was OK.

Accident
A Brite Avenue resident reported a Scarsdale department of public works truck damaged his property Jan. 26.

Cars and Roadways
Police removed an errant Christmas tree from the middle of Coralyn Road and placed it at the curb for sanitation pickup Jan. 21.

A 1964 Fiat, without a registration or VIN number was parked on Circle Road Jan. 22. In the course of investigating the matter, the car’s owner told police the car was awaiting pickup by a vehicle transporter. Police advised the owner to move the car onto private property, pending pickup.

On Jan. 21, a Canterbury Road woman reported finding pieces of a broken taillight in her driveway. Police and the woman believe that a car must have backed down her driveway, struck her garage and broken its tail light.

Patrol notified the highway department about a large fallen tree limb blocking both lanes of Aspen Road Jan. 24.

A wire fell on a car on Post Road Jan. 24. Police confirmed it was a cable wire and removed it from the car. Verizon was informed for repair.
Police placed caution cones in a large pothole at the intersection of Heathcote and Duck Pond roads Jan. 24 and 25.

A driver reported his car struck several potholes on Hutchinson Avenue Jan. 25. The highway department was notified for repair.

Police issued a village code violation warning to the driver of fuel truck making a gasoline delivery on Scarsdale Avenue at 2 a.m., Jan. 26.

On Jan. 26, a Brite Avenue resident reported a department of public works vehicle damaged bushes on her property.

Police notified Con Edison about a broken utility pole on Wheelock Road Jan. 26.
Police notified the highway department about several large potholes on Fenimore Road Jan. 27.

One car accident was reported in the village this week.

Civil matter
Two people were having a civil dispute on Scarsdale Avenue, and one of them called police Jan. 27. The caller said she had elected to purchase a 2015 Lexus and had given the seller a deposit of $300 as a down payment. There was no contract regarding the terms of the sale. The seller then took $100 from the deposit and repaired the car’s alignment, as the buyer said she wanted the alignment fixed before she would agree to purchase the car. A few days later, the caller told the seller she had changed her mind and no longer wanted to purchase the car. The seller said he would only return $200 to her. The caller told him she did not agree and wanted her full deposit back, as she did not give him permission to use the money to fix the alignment. Police explained that conducting business without a clear contract could lead to misunderstandings. In the end, the seller agreed to refund the caller the entire $300.

Lost and found
On Jan. 22, a Brite Avenue man left his wallet at Parkway Café. Police returned it to his house and gave it to the man’s wife.

Firefighters
According to Scarsdale Fire Chief James Seymour, firefighters responded to 33 incidents during the reporting period. Seymour shared details of the following incidents.

On Jan. 21, firefighters responded to a report of smoke in a Montrose Road basement. Firefighters traced it to a malfunctioning oil burner. They shut down the system and advised the resident to repair it.

Water was reported to be leaking inside a Paddington Road house Jan. 22. Upon arrival, firefighters entered the house and saw water leaking from the top floor throughout the house and into the basement, where 5 inches of water had collected. The homeowner was not present. Investigation showed a water supply line to a bathroom sink had broken. Firefighters shut the water off at the main shut off value, shut power to all systems except the boiler and alarm system and opened the sewer trap to drain water from the basement. A key holder responded to address the matter.

Firefighters helped Con Edison personnel check Barker Lane houses for possible gas migration due to an outdoor gas leak with elevated levels of gas concentration detected near the foundation of the house Jan. 23. No gas readings were detected inside the house.

On Jan. 23, firefighters and Scarsdale Volunteer Ambulance Corps responded to a Mamaroneck Road house where a woman was complaining of dizziness at the same time her outdoor emergency generator was running. Firefighters and Con Edison found no signs of carbon monoxide inside the house. Firefighters advised the woman to call an electrician to investigate why the generator might be running.

On Jan. 23, a passerby summoned the fire department upon hearing an alarm sounding inside a Lyons Road house and water leaking out from the garage door. Upon arrival, firefighters found a broken water pipe in the kitchen ceiling and a broken toilet shutoff in the master bedroom – both leaking water. The water had already caused significant damage inside the house, causing saturated sheetrock to fall from the kitchen ceiling. Water was also observed leaking through numerous ceiling light fixtures. Firefighters shut off water at the main shut off valve, drained water from the house’s water heater and water pipes and shut electrical power to the house. They attempted to contact the homeowner via a neighbor.

On Jan. 24, transformer fire started on the Metro North railway tracks near Scarsdale train station. The third rail was arcing and causing bursts of flameselectrical energy within the confines of the station, extending across the railway tracks to the far side of the platform. Firefighters secured the scene, with police help, to ensure the safety of commuters. Since passing trains could be endangered, firefighters requested full stoppage of train travel on tracks one and two. They shut electrical power to the third rail of Track 2. After electricity was shut off, the fire self extinguished. Train travel was resumed on Track 1, and MTA personnel arrived to assess the situation and make any necessary repairs.

Firefighters removed a smoking pot from a Carthage Road kitchen and ventilated the house Jan. 25.

On Jan. 26, a gas-powered saw being used indoors by a contractor in a Horseguard Lane house was causing carbon monoxide to be released inside the house. Firefighters ventilated the house. While addressing the matter, firefighters found workers had dug a 10-foot-deep trench along the side of the house. The building department was notified for follow-up, and workers were instructed to secure the trench and cease work in the meantime.

This report covering police and fire department activity from Jan. 21-27 has been compiled from official information.

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