Police Report: Wallet Stolen from Purse in Plain View inside Woods Lane House

A Woods Lane woman reported her wallet was stolen from her house Sept. 28. She told police she heard footsteps inside the house around 5 a.m., and her husband noticed the door unlocked when he left the house at 7:30 a.m. She last saw her wallet at approximately 8:45 p.m. the previous night when she took out some money and gave it to her son. Her wallet was inside her purse, which was in the mudroom of the house. The purse would have been visible in the mudroom through a rear glass door as well as a rear sliding glass door.

Arrests
On Sept. 28, a 1999 Nissan was reported to be zigzagging and driving in the middle of the road on Post Road near the high school at 9:30 p.m. Police conducted a traffic stop and noticed that the driver – Niels Lauritzen, 56, of the Bronx – was showing signs of intoxication, including a strong odor of alcohol on his breath and an inability to stay upright in the driver’s seat. Lauritzen told police he had consumed “a few glasses of wine” in White Plains. Lauritzen failed field sobriety tests and required assistance to keep from falling over. An alco-sensor pre-screening test indicated a blood alcohol content of .196, and a Datamaster test at headquarters measured Lauritzen’s BAC at .21. Lauritzen was arrested on charges of driving while intoxicated (first offense), aggravated DWI with a blood alcohol content greater than .18 with no priors and failure to use designated lanes. Lauritzen was released on $30 cash bail, and a friend drove him to his home. Lauritzen’s car was parked as the high school in the meantime.

While conducting a seat belt and motor vehicle safety checkpoint at the Heathcote Bypass on Sept. 30, police stopped a 2005 Ford Explorer to ask the driver if he was wearing a seatbelt. Patrol noticed signs of intoxication in the driver’s speech and behavior, as well as several empty beer cans in the back of the car. The driver – Carlos H. Alvarez, 38, of Mamaroneck, was asked to perform field sobriety tests and failed those tests. An alco-sensor pre-screening test indicated a blood alcohol content of .17, and a Datamaster test at headquarters measured Alvarez’s BAC at .16. Alvarez was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated (first offense), operation of a motor vehicle with a BAC of at least .08 and aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

Stolen scooter
A caller reported his battery-powered $600 scooter was stolen from the Scarsdale train station Sept. 27. His $60 lock was cut by the perpetrator as well.

Check fraud
A woman at Village Hall reported two fraudulent checks written against the Village’s payroll account were submitted to a bank for payment Sept. 24. The bank flagged the checks as possibly fraudulent and followed up with Village Hall. The Village did not incur a loss.

Trespassing
On Sept. 24, a Hampton Road homeowner reported kids allegedly entered his vacant house for sale and possibly had a party. The homeowner learned about the incident from his former tenant, who received a text message about the alleged party form a neighbor. There was no reported damage to the house. However, some clothing and garbage had been left behind. According to the homeowner, a relator may have accidentally left a rear door unlocked at the time.

Criminal mischief
A woman walked into headquarters to report she had been in an “unusual situation” Sept. 29. While shopping at Balducci’s, two men approached her window and said, “Do you know you have a dent with yellow on it on your bumper?” They then offered to fix it for $250. The woman agreed to pay the men $200 to fix her bumper, and she drove her car to the rear of Balducci’s for them to conduct the job. While the woman was in Balducci’s retrieving the $200, the two men left without payment. After she got home, she noticed the damage the men had caused to her car. The bumper had gotten worse, and the men had used commercial spray paint to try to cover up the damage. The paint had been splashed over the car’s exhaust pipe, rear brake lights and rear collision sensors. An auto body shop estimated the damage at $1,100.

Concerns
A caller reported seeing a boy, approximately 9 years old, playing soccer outside Greenacres School, in the pouring rain Sept. 25. Police went to the scene and saw two boys playing ball on the outdoor basketball court. They were waiting for school to start. It was 7:55 a.m.

After a teen did not show up for school and the teen’s father could not make contact with him, police checked the welfare of the teen Sept. 27. The teen was found to be at home. He was reported to be “well and going to school.” Patrol remained on scene at 8:49 a.m. and observed the teen leave for school by foot.

A Brewster Road Alzheimer’s patient was reported missing from a restaurant in Greenburgh Sept. 29. Police found the man at home and reunited him with his concerned caretaker.

A Wildwood Road caller reported an SUV pulled into his driveway around midnight, people got out of the car, went onto a neighbor’s yard after the caller’s wife “screamed” and left a dark colored bag outside Sept. 30. The bag contained trash, and police threw it away.

Cars and roadways
Police issued a summons to a car parked by a Brite Avenue fire hydrant Sept. 24.
Patrol helped a Fenimore Road driver tie down his trunk because the trunk latch was broken Sept. 25.

A truck stuck a White Birch Lane mailbox, ran over it and destroyed it, and then left the scene Sept. 25. A neighbor captured the incident on video surveillance.

A man reported an incident of road rage on Post Road Sept. 25. The man said another driver cut him off, then got out of his car and came over to his car to engage in a verbal argument. Police advised the man to stay in his car, roll up the windows and call police if something like that ever happens again.

The highway department was notified about a pothole on Weaver Street Sept. 26.

The highway department was notified about a dead groundhog on Innes Road Sept. 26.

An open house on Garden Road was causing traffic congestion Sept. 26. Police advised drivers to move their cars in order to facilitate traffic flow.

On Sept. 28, police issued summonses to two drivers who passed a school bus stopped on Popham Road with its light flashing and its stop sign displayed.

A parked, blue minivan was left with its ignition running on Chateaux Circle Sept. 28. Police informed the owner, who shut off the ignition.

Patrol helped a driver change his flat tire on Heathcote Road Sept. 30.

Eight car accidents were reported in the village this week.

Flooding
Patrol notified the highway department about flooded locations and taped off affected areas throughout the village Sept. 25. Cars got stuck in floodwater at Sprague and Clarence roads, on Boulevard and on Sprague Road Sept. 25. Department of public works vehicles and staff helped the occupants get out of their cars safely. Other cars got stuck in water on Tompkins and Brookby roads.

Residents reported basements had flooded on Nelson, Madison, Coralyn, Tunstall, Park and Foxhall roads Sept. 25.

A water main break caused water to bubble up through the pavement and cause flooding on Wildwood Road Sept. 25.

Tree
Two Circle Road residents agreed to handle the matter of a fallen tree affecting both of their properties themselves Sept. 26.

Sign
A Jefferson Road woman reported a family driving a Ford Flex stopped in front of her house, got out of their car and took pictures of her front yard Sept. 26. The woman asked the family if they needed any help, and they responded that they were taking photos of a sign in her front yard. The sign was a large Scarsdale High School decal sign posted in the yard, according to police.

Doorbell
An Old Orchard Lane woman reported a person followed her home and was now ringing her doorbell Sept. 26. Police deduced the person ringing the doorbell was a pizza deliveryman who accidentally went to the wrong address. He had a pizza with him.

Civil matter
A tall, white man knocked on the door of a Greendale Road house and asked to speak with the homeowner’s husband, because he allegedly “fired” the man’s wife and owed her money, Sept. 26. He asked for the husband’s phone number, which the homeowner refused to provide, and then left the scene in a black sedan. Police spoke with the husband who acknowledged that his company had done business with the man’s alleged wife and she had requested additional money for a job that had been completed. The husband said he referred the woman to his financial department to inquire about whether all invoices had been paid. He asked police to call the woman to get her side of the story. Police advised the man it was a civil matter, and police do not get involved in disputes involving money exchange and payments between private individuals.

A Tunstall Road resident reported a dispute with a contractor over the quality of work performed at the resident’s house Sept. 27. Police advised the resident it was a civil matter.

Village code
Police dispersed youth gathering on Black Hawk Road after 11 p.m., Sept. 29.
Police issued summonses to landscapers using gas-powered blowers on Palmer Avenue and Mamaroneck Road Sept. 26 and Sept. 27, Olmsted Road Sept. 27, Whig Road Sept. 28 and Post Road Sept. 29.

Wildlife
Fox sightings were reported throughout the village this week. When police encountered an animal, each time it ran away, showing signs of healthy and normal animal behavior.
A coyote was reported on Garden Road Sept. 29.

Lost and found
On Sept. 28, a Secor Road resident reported losing his license plate somewhere in the village.

A Massachusetts license plate was found on Mamaroneck Road, as the result of an auto accident. Sept. 28. Police called the owner of the car involved in the accident, and the owner said her husband would pick it up later.

Firefighters
According to Fire Chief James Seymour, the fire department responded to 114 incidents over the last week, including 80 incidents in less than a 24-hour period from Sept. 25 to 26, due to the rainstorm. He shared a few of last week’s incidents below:

On Sept. 24, firefighters received a report of outside odor of natural gas on Post Road. They found an odor similar to epoxy coming from an outdoor gas meter at Village Hall. As a precaution, Village Hall was evacuated. Con Edison responded. There were no readings of explosive gas inside or outside the building. It was determined that the heating unit for Village Hall was operating improperly and was emitting the odor. The boiler was shut down, and Village Hall staff called for service.

On Sept. 25, firefighters received a report of inside natural gas leak on Stratton Road. Instead, firefighters found a broken and leaking water heater. They shut the gas and water supply and advised the resident to call a plumber. Con Edison had already been notified and responded to check the integrity of the gas supply.

On Sept. 30, firefighters were dispatched to a carbon monoxide alarm on Fairview Road. Upon arrival, firefighters were met by the homeowner who stated the CO detector was defective. A check of house found CO readings of 60‑125 ppm. Con-Ed gas was requested to the scene. The house was ventilated using fans. The homeowner stated the vent cover was off the hot water heater at the time of the alarm. Con-Ed gas found that the hot water heater was not working properly and red tagged it and the furnace. Firefighters advised the homeowner to contact a plumber or HVAC contractor.

On Sept. 28, firefighters responded to a call for smoke in a Sage Terrace basement and found light smoke coming from an overheated sump pump. Firefighters disconnected the pump and advised the homeowner to replace it.

On Sept. 30, firefighters were dispatched to a Paddington Road CO alarm. Upon arrival, firefighters checked the house’s garage and boiler room, where they found up to 60 ppm of CO. Minor readings were also detected in an adjacent basement area. The house was ventilated with a portable fan. Con-Ed responded and found no problems with the boiler. An interview with the homeowner discerned that he left the house in an old car that was burning oil and producing exhaust. That was determined to be the probable cause of the CO accumulation.

On Sept. 30, firefighters were dispatched to a Chesterfield Road CO alarm, where contractors had been cutting concrete in the basement with a gas-powered saw. Firefighters found up to 65 ppm of CO in the basement and minor readings on the first floor. They ventilated the house with a portable fan, and the homeowner was able to reset the alarm.

This report covering police and fire department activity from Sept. 24-30 has been compiled from official information.

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