Two arrested in Seekonk after traffic stop for wrong plates reveals five active warrants

SEEKONK — On Thursday, May 14, 2026, at approximately 7:39 p.m., Officer Eric Schoonmaker of the Seekonk Police Department was patrolling the 800 block of Fall River Avenue when he observed a white Toyota Rav4 exit the parking lot of the Motel 6 located at 821 Fall River Avenue and enter the southbound lane of Fall River Avenue.

(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Eric Schoonmaker and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.) 

“I then conducted a query of the registration on my mobile data terminal (MDT) and saw that the registration was cancelled and belonged on a Dodge Neon,” Officer Schoonmaker said. “I then steered my marked patrol vehicle behind the Toyota, activated my overhead emergency lights and initiated a motor vehicle stop. The Toyota yielded to my lights and pulled over after it completed its circuit on the I-195 West on-ramp.”

Officer Schoonmaker said he then exited his cruiser and spoke with the driver, later identified as James Lang, and the passengers, later identified as Rebecca Bielecki and Candice [last name redacted].

“I advised James for the reason for my stopping him, and he explained that he ‘bought the car’ a few months prior but had not obtained a registration for it. James was also unable to furnish any insurance,” Officer Schoonmaker said. “Furthermore, when asked for his driver’s license, James stated that he had not had one in over 40 years.”

According to police, James Joseph Lang, 64, is a resident of North Providence, Rhode Island, and Rebecca L. Bielecki, 41, is a resident of Providence, Rhode Island.

“At this time, Patrolman [Theodore] Santos arrived on scene and James was instructed to exit the vehicle,” Officer Schoonmaker said. “James complied and was detained. It should be noted that Rebecca was not seat belted in, and voluntarily provided me with her information.”

Officer Schoonmaker said that upon completing a query of both Lang and Bielecki’s biographical information, he learned that both individuals had the following active warrants for their arrest:

“After confirming these warrants with Seekonk Communications, both were placed in handcuffs, which were fitted, double locked and checked for tightness,” Officer Schoonmaker said. “I then requested a tow truck to my location and conducted an inventory of the vehicle pursuant to SPD [Seekonk Police Department] policy.”

Officer Schoonmaker said a tow truck from Seekonk Auto Body arrived a short time later and removed the vehicle without incident. He added that Candice, the third passenger, was transported from the scene to her room at the Motel 6 in a Seekonk Police Department patrol vehicle.

“James and Rebecca were then transported to Seekonk Police Headquarters where both were photographed, fingerprinted, given access to a telephone and booked into a holding cell,” Officer Schoonmaker said.

Sergeant Keith Perry contacted the bail clerk, who authorized Rebecca’s release on her promise to appear in court and denied bail for James. A short time later, Rebecca was released from custody, and James was transported to the New Bedford House of Corrections without incident.

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Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in May, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.

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