CLINTON — On Thursday, February 13, 2025, at approximately 12:35 a.m., Officer Brendan Rutherford of the Clinton Police Department was dispatched to the area of 278 Main Street following a report of suspicious activity.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Rutherford and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“The reporting party stated that a work van had been parked partially in the road for over an hour with its hazard lights on,” Officer Rutherford said.
When he arrived on scene, Officer Rutherford said he observed a white Home Depot work van with Massachusetts plates parked on the side of the road. It was running, obstructing part of the southbound travel lane, and had its flashing hazard lights activated.
“I observed a male party, later identified as Scott Lynde (DOB [redacted]) sleeping while seated in the driver’s seat,” Officer Rutherford said. “I could observe a large piece of Chore Boy (thin copper dish scrubber) hanging on the vehicle’s shifter. Through my training and experience, I have knowledge of Chore Boy being used as a filter device while smoking crack cocaine.”
Since our launch in February 2022, News Link Live has reached over 1.8 million viewers in Massachusetts and beyond. Interested in a targeted advertising campaign? Contact us at newslinklivealerts@gmail.com or book a consultation call with us through the button below to explore your options today!
Officer Rutherford said he knocked on the window of the work van with his flashlight, waking Lynde.
According to police, Scott C. Lynde, 34, is a resident of Bigelow Street in Marlborough, MA.
“Immediately upon noticing my presence at his window, Mr. Lynde’s behavior became erratic,” Officer Rutherford said. “Mr. Lynde was unable to sit still in his seat and was attempting to reach around the vehicle with his right hand. At this time, I asked dispatch to send me an additional unit and began issuing verbal commands to Mr. Lynde to keep his hands on the steering wheel.”
Shortly thereafter, Officers Matt Champagne and John McNamara arrived on scene.
After backup arrived, Officer Rutherford asked Lynde to exit the vehicle and advised him that he would be searching the vehicle due to drug paraphernalia being in plain view.
“Mr. Lynde was placed in handcuffs (DL) while he was detained. I asked Mr. Lynde if there were any drugs located inside of the van or on his person to which he stated no,” Officer Rutherford said. “While searching the van, a crack pipe was discovered in a cigarette pack located in a cup holder. There were also several pocket and hunting style knives located throughout the work van.”
At this time, Officer Brendan O’Malley also arrived on scene.
Officer Rutherford said that because drug paraphernalia and knives were found in the vehicle, Patrolman McNamara searched Lynde’s person.
“The results of that search produced a syringe from Mr. Lynde’s front pant pocket, and several pieces of a hard white substance were recovered from Mr. Lyndes jacket pocket,” Officer Rutherford said. “Through my training and experience, I recognize the hard, white substance to be crack cocaine. At this time, Mr. Lynde was advised he was under arrest for the possession of crack cocaine.”
Officer Rutherford said a tow was requested and Patrolman Champagne began an inventory of the van in accordance with department policy. A short time later, Guaranty Auto Sales & Service arrived and took possession of the vehicle.
Lynde was transported back to the Clinton Police Department for booking.
“The hard white substance was weighed on a digital scale kept in the booking room,” Officer Rutherford said. “The total amount of the substance was 3.1 grams. The substance will be sent to the state drug laboratory for testing.”
Lynde was charged with:
- Possession of Class B Substance
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from February, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to get the court documents for the incident. FOIAs are time consuming.
To learn more about News Link Live’s unique business model, please read the following:
An online business model that could replace local newspapers
The Medium is the Message by Marshall McCLuhan
The Ego and the ID by Sigmund Freud
