LEOMINSTER — On Friday June 28th, 2024, at 7:50 p.m., Officer Alec Greenawalt of the Leominster Police Department was dispatched to the intersection of June Street and Viscoloid Ave following a report of a breaking and entering.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narratives of Officers Greenawalt and Carlson and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
Officers Ronald Ramos and Laurinda Dion also responded to the scene.
When they arrived on scene, police were met with the reporting party who said he saw two men attempt to break into 29 June Street. According to police, 29 June Street is a privately owned warehouse located on land that is currently for sale. The building was condemned following a partial collapse.
The reporting party said he saw two men, later identified as Roger Perez, aged 31, and William Graff.
According to police, William J. Graff, 45, is a resident of 3 Avon Place in Fitchburg.
“[The reporting party] stated he witnessed William using a pair of bolt cutters to gain entry into a fenced area of 29 June Street,” Officer Greenawalt said. “[The reporting party] stated that he first observed the males on his way to Hannafords and on his way back, about seven minutes later, he observed them walking away from the building. [He] informed us both male parties were heading down Viscoloid Ave at the time.”
The reporting party added that both men had backpacks and that Graff was in possession of the bolt cutters, Officer Greenawalt said.
The officers drove down June Street and found Perez just around the corner of Viscoloid Ave.
“[The reporting party] drove by and confirmed that Roger was one of the males he observed attempting to gain entry into 29 June Street,” Officer Greenawalt said.
Officer Ramos asked Perez what he was doing in the area and inquired about the identity of the friend he was with.
“Roger stated he was not with another party,” Officer Greenawalt said. “Roger continued to claim he was not involved with another party, and that he was simply walking in the area. [The reporting party] drove back to our location and informed Officer Ramos and I that he saw William, the second male he witnessed attempting to break in, heading down Viscoloid Ave towards the National Grid at Lorchris Street and Viscoloid Ave.”
The reporting party told police that Graff was wearing a gray shirt and a pair of jeans.
“At this time Officer Dion requested additional units to assist with finding the second suspect; Officers [Nicholas] Rice and [Braden] Carlson responded to the scene. I informed Officers Rice and Carlson of the information [the reporting party] provided,” Officer Greenawalt said.
Shortly thereafter, Officers Rice and Carlson located Graff on Commercial Road; they requested that the reporting party respond to the scene so he could positively ID Graff as one of the individuals he saw attempting to break into the building.
“[The reporting party] confirmed the second male Officers Rice and Carlson stopped was William,” Officer Greenawalt said. “William was transported to Viscoloid Ave by officers so both Roger and William could be spoken to at the same time. Officer Ramos questioned William about his involvement in the crime. William declined to answer any questions regarding the investigation. Due to [the reporting party’s] witness statement, placing the bolt cutters in William’s hands, William was placed under arrest for vandalism. Roger was released but advised not to return to the property and advised that he may be charged pending an investigation.”
Officer Carlson transported Graff to the station for booking. According to Officer Carlson, while he was transporting Graff back to the station, Graff’s phone had the police scanner on and it was tuned into “Leominster police radio.”
Officer Greenawalt remained on scene and spoke with the reporting party, who reported seeing at least three individuals in or around the building over the past few weeks.
“He believes they have been breaking into 29 June Street,” Officer Greenawalt said. “Officer Dion advised dispatch of a phone number for [the owner of 29 June Street], but they were unable to contact him. Officers searched 29 June Street and located an open door on the left side of the building. The deadbolt had been pried and bent to gain entry. Just inside the door was a duffle bag containing numerous tools (a hack saw with additional blades, a pry bar, wire snippers, gloves, and a pipe cutting tool), a package with William’s name and address and his wallet which contained his MA license, EBT card and multiple credit/debit cards with William Graff’s name. As I walked through the warehouse, I observed multiple areas with stripped wires on the floor and damage throughout the building. Pictures were taken inside the property showing strips of wires on the floor. Several cans of Monster Energy drinks and other bottles were collected to be used to process any DNA that may be on the cans; the bottles collected appeared to be new as they did not have layers of dirt covering them like many of the other items in the building. A set of eyeglasses were [also] taken as evidence to be tested for DNA. Multiple tools were located across the building and have been photographed.”
Based on his investigation, Officer Greenawalt charged Graff with the following offenses for these reasons:
- Vandalize Property: “William knowingly damaged the property of [name redacted] by using a pair of bolt cutters to gain access to a secure area of the building. William was seen by a reliable witness using bolt cutters to cut a metal chain securing a fenced-in area. The fenced-in area contained pipes filled with copper electrical wiring which had been cut and areas of the ground were dug up.”
- Breaking & Entering Building Daytime for Felony: “William knowingly entered 29 June Street during the daytime with the intent to knowingly deprive the owner of the wire and metal inside the building. William has no legal right or reason to be inside of 29 June Street as the building is owned by [name redacted]; the land is for sale and the building was condemned after a partial collapse.”
- Possession of Burglarious Tools: “William knowingly possessed a pair of bolt cutters he used to gain entry to 29 June Street to steal wire. Inside 29 June Street a large duffle bag was found containing multiple tools used for cutting; William’s wallet with his Massachusetts license was found inside of the same duffle bag. While speaking with William he stated that his wallet and ID were at home.”
Back at the station, Officer Dion called the owner of 29 June Street.
“[The owner] was advised that his building ’29 June Street’ was broken into, and one suspect was arrested,” Officer Greenawalt recounted. “[The owner] stated that he was aware that about a week and a half ago his building had been broken into and that wire was being stolen. Officer Dion asked [the owner] if he reported this incident and he said no. [The owner] stated that he did not make a report as he did not have any proof of who broke in. [The owner] stated that he would be back in town tomorrow and that he will look through 29 June Street and inform me of anything he believes was damaged or stolen. I was advised by Officer Carlson while transporting William to the station, he heard a police scanner coming from William’s phone. At the station, I went to cell one to speak with William as I believe he did not act alone. William stated he wished to remain silent at this time. We stopped conversing and left the cell area.”
Graff’s bail was set at $500.
Graff was arraigned in Leominster District Court on July 1, 2024. Following his arraignment, Graff was released on his own personal recognizance under the condition that he stay away from 29 June Street in Leominster.
Graff attended a pretrial conference on Aug. 7, 2024.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from late June, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to get the court documents for the incident. FOIAs are time consuming.
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