WESTFIELD — More than a dozen young persons are facing charges after city police broke up an apparent party in a vacant house on Northwest Road.
Police report that a Northwest Road resident called at 12:40 a.m. Tuesday to report that somebody apparently was inside a nearby vacant house as lights were seen inside of the house, which has been vacant for a long period, and a dog was barking.
Officer Francis Gaulin was on patrol in the sector and reports that he is familiar with the house which he referred to as abandoned. He said that vandalism and trespassing have been chronic problems at the house which he said the owner has addressed by making efforts to limit access to the property, by covering doors and windows and posting “No trespassing” signs.
Gaulin reports that when he arrived he drove behind the house and, when he illuminated his cruiser’s lights, he observed three persons flee from a back door and run into the woods nearby.
Leaving Officer Ricky Maciorowski, who arrived moments after Gaulin, to secure the house, Gaulin pursued the three suspects in the woods where he apprehended two of them. He reports that, as he was escorting the two prisoners back to the house, the third suspect emerged from the woods and surrendered to him.
Gaulin left his three prisoners with Maciorowski and returned to the woods to assist Office Juanita Mejias who had arrived less than a minute after Maciorowski and was in pursuit of two other persons she had seen flee from the house into the woods.
Together, Gaulin and Mejias apprehended two more suspects who joined the group under Maciorowski’s supervision and the officers heard sticks breaking on the north side of the house. They investigated to see a male and a female suspect who fled when they saw the officers.
The female suspect was ensnared by dense brush and was apprehended.
By the time the sixth prisoner was added to Maciorowski’s corral, Officers Frank Soleimani, James Renaudette, Patrick Shea and Michael Kane had arrived to assist and Gaulin and Soleimani entered the house.
Gaulin reports that the rear door was found to have been broken to gain access to the interior and the officers observed partially full cans of beer in the kitchen which he reported had been “destroyed”.
A further search revealed five male parties hiding in the attic of the house.
Outside, Kane found two girls who emerged from the woods and admitted being in the house.
Shea found a third girl leaving the woods who also admitted trespassing and the three additional suspects were added to the group at the house.
Seven of the suspects were found to be juveniles.
One of the juvenile boys, a 16-year-old Agawam resident, was found to be the subject of an outstanding warrant and he was arrested on the warrant. He was also charged with breaking and entering with intent to commit a misdemeanor and with trespass.
Another juvenile boy was transported to his home and surrendered to the custody of his mother.
Four juvenile girls and an additional juvenile boy were taken to the station where parents came to take them home.
Criminal complaints for breaking and entering with intent to commit a misdemeanor and for trespass were filed against the children surrendered to their parents.
The remaining seven suspects – Michael A. England, 20, of 25 E. Silver St.; Gregory P. Harris, 19, of 77 High St., Agawam; Brandon A. Callahan, 19, of 28 Russell Road; Andrew E. Johnson, 24, of 28 Sharon Lane, Feeding Hills; Jeremy K. Michel, 20, of 21 Klondike Ave.; Eric Daniel Sadler, 21, of 28 Brenda Drive and Riley M. Garstka, 17, of 17 Brookline Ave. – were transported to the station and arrested on the same charges.
Later in the morning, Soleimani and Shea were called to Stony Lane where vehicles owned by two of the suspects, England and Johnson, were found to be parked.
The two vehicles were towed to the police impound yard.
A pre-tow inventory revealed a small amount of marijuana in the 1993 Honda Civic owned by England and a city ordinance violation citation was issued.
The seven suspects were arraigned later in the day at Westfield District Court where each was ordered to stay away from the address where they were found and enjoined from making threats or violence to toward the property owner.
They were released on their personal recognizance pending a Nov. 14 hearing in district court.
Sadler, who has a lengthy history with the Westfield Police Department, was released on $1,000 personal surety and will also return to court on Nov. 14 for a pre-trial hearing.
