“DARTMOUTH, MA – On Thursday, February 1, 2024, members of the Dartmouth Police Department Investigative Services Division, in partnership with the Massachusetts State Police High Risk Victims Unit, conducted an undercover sting operation to combat the growing threat of prostitution and commercial sexual exploitation.

Throughout the day and night, detectives working in an undercover capacity arranged to meet with suspects at a local hotel/motel through an online ad that was posted.

As a result of the operation, a total of seven (7) men were arrested and charged with sexual conduct for a fee.

According to Dartmouth Chief of Police, Brian P. Levesque, “This operation was the direct result of our commitment to combating the ongoing issues that we are experiencing at our local hotels and motels. Though it is impossible to completely eradicate the inherent problems that come with the transient environment that these establishments support, I would like it to be known that we, along with our partners at the State Police, will be taking further progressive measures to suppress this activity moving forward.”-Dartmouth Police Department.
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“Earlier this week, our members, friends, and family came together as part of the State Police Association Benevolent Fund Team to take part in the 8th annual BFit Challenge hosted by the Boston Bruins Foundation at TD Garden.

We would like to thank all who came out in support of such a great cause that in total raised more than $865,000 to benefit first responders and military charities including the Benevolent Fund.”-State Police Association of Massachusetts.

All photos by the State Police Association of Massachusetts:

The New Bedford Police Department have arrested two car breakers during two seperate incidents in the past few days. One suspect led officers on a foot chase and is now facing two counts of breaking into a motor vehicle to commit a felony and resisting arrest. NBPD released the following statement detailing both incidents.

“On January 26th at around 10 PM, Sgt. Andy Simmons of the department’s narcotics unit was conducting surveillance in the west end sector. At this time, he observed a male walking in the area of Sixth St. and School St. trying the door handle of a parked vehicle. Sgt. Simmons watched as the male moved on towards another vehicle, successfully opened the door, and then entered.

The suspect exited this vehicle shortly thereafter and Sgt. Simmons asked awaiting detectives to approach him. Sgt. Jonathan Lagoa and Detective Emily Pacheco stopped the suspect who was identified as Mr. JAVIER MENDEZ-COLON, 32, of 60 S. Second St. MENDEZ-COLON was found to have property belonging to the vehicle’s owner in his possession. He was then placed under arrest and taken into custody.

MENDEZ-COLON was charged with breaking into a motor vehicle at night with the intent to commit a felony. He has an extensive history with numerous convictions for a variety of crimes including two previous charges of breaking and entering. At the time of this arrest, MENDEZ-COLON was on probation out of New Bedford District Court.

Early this morning at around 3:30 AM, in the area of the Watson St./Duke St. intersection, police were called regarding a vehicle break. A quarter-glass window on the driver’s side had been smashed by the suspect who then entered the vehicle and stole some property. Upon being spotted by the vehicle’s owner, he immediately fled the scene, jumping over nearby fences to make his escape.

Later in the morning, at around 6 AM, Ofc. Carlos Fernandes was on patrol when he observed this same male going through a parked vehicle on Willow St. in the area of the Bullock St. intersection. Ofc. Fernandes approached the male who then once again attempted to flee the scene, leading responding officers on a foot chase through several nearby yards before he was ultimately caught and taken into custody after a brief struggle. He was identified as Mr. WALTER BREWSTER, 55, with a last known address of 103 Durfee St. BREWSTER was discovered to have numerous items believed to have been stolen from parked vehicles, including the one from Watson St. earlier in the morning. He was arrested and charged with two counts of breaking into a motor vehicle to commit a felony and resisting arrest.

Mr. BREWSTER also has an extensive criminal history with numerous convictions for offenses such as assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, larceny, possession of burglarious tools, and 4 previous cases of breaking and entering.”

Thursday morning at 9:55am, 911 calls were received reporting a possible explosion inside the mill complex located at 46 Harbor Street.

First arriving crews reported the sprinkler system was flowing and a smoke condition on the first floor. This is a three-story, Type 4 mill building measuring over 900’ long and 100’ wide. The fire originated in the office space of a machine shop on the first floor. The fire was contained by one sprinkler head.

Fire crews performed overhaul, conducted ventilation operations, and assisted in restoring the sprinkler system.
The cause of the fire was investigated by the NBFD Fire Investigation Unit and determined to be a heat gun left too close to combustibles. There were no civilian or firefighter injuries.

New Bedford EMS, City of New Bedford Police Department (Official), City of New Bedford Emergency Management assisted on scene.

New Bedford Fire Department photo.

“BOSTON – A Chelsea man pleaded guilty today to illegally selling multiple machinegun conversion devices to an undercover federal agent.

Michael Williams, 50, was indicted on two counts of transferring or possessing a machinegun and one count of being a felon in possession of ammunition. U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper scheduled sentencing for May 15, 2024. Williams was arrested and charged by criminal complaint in July 2023 and subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury in August 2023.

In January 2023, Williams agreed to sell several machinegun conversion devices and other firearm accessories to an undercover agent. Following a series of communications, Williams met the undercover agent twice at a pre-arranged location. On Jan. 12, 2023, Williams sold the first machinegun conversion device, along with numerous rounds of ammunition. On the following day Williams sold two additional machinegun conversion devices to the undercover agent. Williams is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition due to a prior felony conviction.

FBI photo.

The charge of unlawful transferring or possession of a machinegun provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The felon in possession charge provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Chelsea Police Chief Keith Houghton made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Dawley of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit is prosecuting the case.”-Massachusetts Department of Justice.

“I grew up in Fall River, but I thought I’d share some of my New Bedford heritage on the birthday of my 4th great-grandmother, who lived most of her long life in NB.

Amazingly, I recently discovered photos of both of them in an online collection at the Harvard libraries.

Her husband, my 4th great-grandfather, Phineas H. Kenney was born around Sep 1784 in North Fairhaven, Massachusetts to Jacob Kenney and Pernal Hammond. During the War of 1812 he served as a Private in Captain William Nye’s Company in the 2nd Regiment, Massachusetts militia.

Phineas married Achsah Bennet in 1807 in New Bedford. She had been born in Sandwich. He was a mason, a profession his son Lorenzo and grandson Alonzo would also enter. Phineas was highly instrumental in the organization of the Methodist Episcopal church in New Bedford.

He died in 1870 shortly before his 86th birthday. Achsah would die in 1886 at the age of 95.” Photos by Chris Kenney.

Chris Kenney photo.

Chris Kenney photo.

“On Monday morning, our office announced the solving of the 1991 cold case homicide of Brent Davis.

Attached to that press release (see above) was a photo of the victim. The photo was provided to the Massachusetts State Police Trooper who headed up the cold case investigation by Mr. Davis’ mother.

After the photo was published in many media outlets, other surviving family members of the victim contacted our office to state that the victim’s mother made a mistake when she provided the photo to the state trooper. The photo disseminated to the media was actually Mr. Davis’ cousin, who is alive and well.

After speaking with Mr. Davis’s family members and following up with Mr. Davis’s mother, we can confirm that Mr. Davis’s mother did mistakenly provide the trooper with a photo of the victim’s cousin instead of the actual victim.

All parties regret the error and are asking the media to take down the previously distributed photo from their online news stories and replace it with one or both of the photos that are attached to this e-mail.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.”-Bristol County District Attorney’s Office.

In an alarming interview on WCVB-TV, it appears Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey begins crying while stating “I don’t know what we are going to do for a couple or 3 months” referring to the migrant crisis we are facing in Massachusetts.

Protests started outside of the Melnea Cass Recreational Complex in Roxbury, Massachusetts as Governor Healey recently toured the facility. This complex which gives local children a safe place to play, is now shut down and being used to house migrant families.

Governor Healey authorized this space to be used for housing migrants, after she faced criticism for housing them inside Boston’s Logan Airport. In her WCVB-TV interview she floats the idea of potentially reaching out to more schools to use as housing in the future.

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“A 35-year-old New Bedford fentanyl trafficker was sentenced to serve eight to 10 years in state prison on Friday in Fall River Superior Court, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III announced.

Ramon Genao pleaded guilty to an indictment charging him with Trafficking in Excess of 100 Grams of Fentanyl. The defendant is not a US citizen. A federal detainer has been filed and the defendant will likely be deported upon completion of his state prison sentence.

On February 19, 2021, the defendant was a target of a search warrant executed by New Bedford Police at 2100 Phillips Road Apartment #3. During pre-raid surveillance, police observed him enter into a motor vehicle and drive off. Police stopped his vehicle and arrested him for unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

A search of the defendant yielded 92.4 grams of fentanyl in his pocket, two cell phones and apartment keys. Police then went to the apartment. In the defendant’s bedroom, police located $2440 in cash and a receipt for a $1500 money order sent to the Dominican Republic. Police also located an additional 115 grams of fentanyl in 16 plastic bags, two sifters, four ziploc bags with residue and a nutri-bullet mixer containing drug residue inside a Similac can in a kitchen cabinet. There was also a digital scale and a drug press.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Matthew Lopes and the state prison sentence was imposed by Judge Raffi Yessayan.

“The defendant was trafficking in a significant amount of fentanyl, a drug that has led to an increase in overdoses in our community during the last decade. The prison sentence is appropriate based upon the facts, and the defendant will be subject to deportation upon completing his sentence,” District Attorney Quinn said.”-Bristol County District Attorney’s Office.

COME JOIN OUR PACE TEAM!

We are looking for candidates with a passion for working with children in an early learning environment with the following qualifications and skills:

• AA/BA in Social Services or related field,
• Experience working with people from diverse cultural backgrounds,
• Sensitivity to the needs of families with low-income and knowledge of community resources essential,
• Excellent communication, verbal and writing skills, computer skills (Microsoft Office Outlook, Word, and Excel),
• Driver’s License and access to a vehicle for transportation to home/agency visits,
• Bi-lingual in Spanish,
• Must be able to pass CORI & DCF background checks and meet state/federal mandates pertaining to credentials and professional development.

The Family Advocate is responsible for recruiting and enrolling eligible children for Head Start services. He/she follows federal guidelines and procedures for enrollment; completes forms, verifies eligibility, and enters family data in the computer. Home visits and family survey forms are completed to engage families in partnerships to improve and support the quality of family life while also encouraging parents to be involved in their child’s education and school readiness.

The Advocate participates in case management meetings to ensure that quality services are delivered to each child and family. He/she maintains a record of referrals, supportive services and outcomes. The Advocate facilitates positive relationships between the Head Start Program, children, families, and community agencies and services.

Head Start provides family-centered pre-school programming for over 250 income-eligible families with children from age 3 to age 5 living in the Greater New Bedford area.

To learn more about the program visit us at: www.paceinfo.org and click on the “Programs” tab.

SALARY:  $22.06 – $24.56/hour, 35 – 40 hours. per week, 44 – 52 weeks per year, depending on funding and caseload assignments.

Excellent benefits include: paid vacation time, personal time, sick time and holidays; low-cost health insurance; dental, vision plans, and no-cost life insurance.

P.A.C.E. is an AFFIRMATIVE ACTION/EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

E-mail a cover letter, resume, and the name of the position you are applying for to hrjobapplications@paceinfo.org no later than: