CLINTON — On Saturday, February 1, 2025, while on duty, Detective Christopher Cornelius of the Clinton Police Department was notified by Sergeant Ed Jaffrey around 11:30 a.m. that he had taken an initial report of slashed tires and asked him to further investigate the incident.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Det. Cornelius and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“Sgt. Jeffrey advised me, that there was a woman in the victim room in the process of filing an emergency restraining order, against the suspect in the tire vandalism,” Det. Cornelius said. “Sgt. Jeffrey advised me that the victim feels the suspect, who was later identified as the defendant, Justin Smalley, of Berlin, MA , was targeting her when the tires were slashed. Notwithstanding, the vehicle that was vandalized, has no connection to the victim, however it just happened to be parked in the wrong place.”
Sergeant Jaffrey provided Detective Cornelius with video surveillance from the building owner, which captured a large male leaving the area of the vandalized car. The video was shown to the victim, who immediately identified the individual in the video as her ex-boyfriend, Justin Smalley.
According to police, Justin Edward Smalley, 41, is a resident of 8 Stones Corner Road, Berlin, MA.
“She was able to point out his ‘DC brand’ shoes in the video as well,” Det. Cornelius said. “It should be noted, that this female is the ex-girlfriend of Smalley, and is identified as Kristin [last name redacted] of [number redacted] High St. in Clinton.”
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The vehicle vandalized in the video was a black Lexus with Massachusetts plates.
“Due to vandalism, the right rear tire and rim were damaged,” Det. Cornelius said. “The owner of the vehicle was identified as Kimberly Oliveira, of 3 Norman Street in Clinton. It should be noted, that when it was discovered that the tire was vandalized, the owner of the building, Dennis Ciccone, who is also the significant other of Oliveira, text messaged the defendant stating ‘That was my girlfriend’s black Lexus’ the defendant replies ‘huh,’ ‘what’s your Venmo,’ ‘how much do I owe you,’ and ‘call me’. It should be noted, that where this vehicle was parked is in a secluded alleyway behind a large commercial building, and apartments. Smalley was once a resident of this apartment with [Kristen]. It is also posted ‘no trespassing.’”
Det. Cornelius said that – based on all of these factors – he contacted the Berlin police and advised them of his intent to arrest Justin Smalley on probable cause of vandalizing property.
“Officer James McNamara and myself went to the Town of Berlin, and met Sgt. Richard Gilcrest at 8 Stones Corner Road,” Det. Cornelius said. “Smalley was taken into custody without incident and transported the Clinton police station. Once at the station, Smalley was booked and afforded all applicable rights.”
Smalley was charged with vandalism.
His bail was set at $1,000.00 cash.
“It should be noted that Smalley admitted to slashing the tire during booking, which was captured on BWC [body worn camera],” Det. Cornelius said.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from the beginning of the month, 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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