WESTFIELD – The License Commission found that there was no violation of state or city law when stolen rings were found in the possession of the store manager during a larceny investigation.
Liquor license holders cannot “allow any illegality” on their premises, which was what the members of the commissioned focused on last night prior to voting after receiving a report from the Westfield Police Department.
Police were investigating a string of larceny incidents in which jewelry was taken from a senior citizen living at 25 Washington Street over a period of time. The victim said she had befriended a male who was living on the street and he frequently came to her apartment.
The victim said that about 40 rings, with a total value of about $800, were missing from her bedroom.
Officers discovered some of the missing property at an Elm Street jewelry store licensed to buy and sell used and antique jewelry. The city requires that detailed records be kept of used merchandise purchased under that license.
The officers photographed that jewelry and showed the photographs to the victim who identified some of it has being her missing property.
The jewelry store personnel identified the man who had brought the jewelry into the store and he was located and questioned about how he came to be in possession of the stolen property.
The man admitted to stealing the jewelry and that he sold other items on the street and exchanged some of the jewelry for alcoholic beverages at Ryan’s Package store. Investigators later recovered a small white box containing rings.
Last night the investigating detective said that he did smell the odor of alcohol on the victim when he made that statement and that the suspect typically had that odor
Attorney Paul M. Maleck, of the Springfield law firm of Doherty, Wallace, Pillsbury and Murphy, P.C. , countered that claim, stating that he had interviewed the suspect, when he was not smelling of alcohol and his eyes clear, which resulted in a different statement.
“There is a lot more to this story than went into that (police) report,” Maleck said. “There are at least two serious misstatements.
Maleck said the suspect is well-known to the staff of the package store, who have in the past loaned him money to eat. The suspect is an alcoholic who does odd jobs for money.
Maleck said that when the suspect came to the store with the rings he was asked if that property was stolen and replied that he got a job cleaning out a building and was told that he could keep anything he found, such as the rings.
The employees gave the suspect money, but declined to sell him alcohol and told him to leave the store with the rings. Maleck said the suspect left the rings with a clerk as collateral for the money, with the intent that the rings be returned.
The manager, Erwin Anderson, said that the rings were never exchanged for alcoholic beverages.
“I’m not risking my name, my business for pennies,” Anderson said. “The rings were junk, not worth $30. I have known Moses since the day I bought the store. I believe in helping people, I have given him money in the past and he has always paid it back.”
The commission, after considerable discussion, concluded that it was not certain that illegal activity had occurred and cleared the owners of Ryan’s.
The board did issue a verbal warning. Commissioner Edward Diaz said there has been “a series of red flags, there was some misjudgment here.”
Commission Chairman Christopher Mowatt said there has been “poor judgment” shown as evidenced by a number of failed alcohol compliance stings.
“I’m hoping that you will do something differently very soon,” Mowatt said. “I think the statement (of the investigating detective) was clear and accurate. You guys are on thin ice.”
