On Sunday morning Massachusetts State Police received several 911 calls about a damaged car on the side of the highway on I-91 in Hatfield.

Upon arrival, responders found the wreck of a Honda Civic and found a deceased man outside of the car and spotted a bear in the wood line near the scene. The bear immediately ran off into the woods.

Preliminary investigation by state police suggests that the lone occupant of the car, Daniel Ducharme, 31, of South Hadley, was driving on Route 91 when he lost control of the car for unknown reasons. He struck the guardrail multiple times, went down an embankment, and struck several trees in the woods.

“Evidence and observations at the scene suggest that the man was at least partially ejected from the car and most likely deceased as a result of the crash, before the bear made contact with the deceased.” Massachusetts State Police’s Dave Procopio said.

The crash is still under investigation.

“The 60-year-old New Bedford man who was shot during an incident on Austin Street on April 29 has died from his injuries and the alleged shooter will now be charged with Murder, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III announced.

Officers responded to the area of Austin Street near County Street at about 2:30 p.m. on April 29 for a report of a male gunshot victim.

The victim, Ronald Sinclair, was rushed to the hospital for treatment. On Friday, May 3rd the victim succumbed to his injuries and died.

The alleged shooter, Christopher Smith, 38, of New Bedford, was initially arrested shortly after the shooting in the backyard of a home on Chestnut Street.

The defendant will be arraigned tomorrow morning in New Bedford District Court on the new Murder charge.

Assistant District Attorney Charlie Schofield is prosecuting the case.”-Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn.

“DARTMOUTH, MA – On Saturday, May 4, 2024, at approximately 10:08 pm, officers assigned to carnival patrol detail, outside of the Dartmouth Mall located at 356 State Road, were alerted to a disturbance at the carnival.

Jeffrey Lehman, 54, of Fall River allegedly followed a victim and her friend for a period of time before Lehman reportedly approached her and began touching her inappropriately.

It is alleged that Lehman continued with inappropriate comments, then placed money down the victim’s shirt.

When other attendees of the carnival learned of the conflict, they created a barrier between the victim and Lehman.

Officers then arrived and placed Lehman under arrest. He is charged with indecent assault and battery on a person 14 or over and accosting/annoying another person.”-Dartmouth Police Department.

Dartmouth Police Department photo.

“DARTMOUTH, MA – On Saturday, May 4, 2024, at approximately 10:30 a.m., Dartmouth Police responded to Walmart regarding a reported shoplifting. Officers arrived to find a male in the store and a female who then fled the area in a vehicle. The female, later identified as Ashley VERTENTES, 32, of New Bedford was found to have an active warrant and was later located at the Dartmouth Motor Inn.

During the arrest of VERTENTES, a detective assigned to the Community Impact Unit observed packaging materials, digital scales, and suspected narcotics in plain view in the room. They then requested a search warrant for the room which was later granted. During the search, detectives located approximately ten (10) grams of suspected fentanyl, approximately twelve (12) grams of suspected crack cocaine, approximately four (4) grams of suspected powder cocaine, numerous other illicit pills, digital scales, cutting agents typically used to package and distribute narcotics, and various other suspected narcotic packaging materials.

In addition to the warrant arrest, VERTENTES was charged with shoplifting. She will also receive a summons for charges including possession with intent to distribute Class A, two counts of possession with intent to distribute Class B, two counts of possession with intent to distribute Class E, and conspiracy to violate drug law.

As a result of the findings associated with the search, Dartmouth Police detectives also arrested Lance ALFORD, 54, of Randolph. ALFORD is being charged with possession with intent to distribute Class A, two counts of possession with intent to distribute Class B, possession with intent to distribute Class A (subsequent offense), two counts of possession with intent to distribute Class B (subsequent offense), two counts of possession with intent to distribute Class E, and conspiracy to violate drug law.”-Dartmouth Police Department.

Dartmouth Police Department photo.

New Geographical Information System Available On City’s Website.

“NEW BEDFORD – A state-of-the-art digital mapping and property information tool is now available on the City’s website.

The new application, powered by AxisGIS and CAI Technologies, enhances the traditional parcel lookup system into a graphic interface with more detail, data, and information about properties across the City.

“The new property lookup tool offers New Bedford residents an enormous amount of information,” Mayor Jon Mitchell said. “We’re always looking for opportunities to provide better services and innovative tools to our residents, and this digital upgrade delivers that right from their smartphones or home computers.”

Residents and interested parties are encouraged to check the new tool out on the City’s website, www.newbedford-ma.gov. It can be found in a few different spots: on the homepage under the residents pulldown menu, by scrolling down to the middle of the homepage and clicking on the property lookup button, or by visiting the Assessor’s Office section. Residents can access it directly at https://next.axisgis.com/New_BedfordMA/.

It has all the basic information commonly found on the internet, such as tax assessments and property details like sale information, bathrooms, bedrooms, and lot sizes. Additionally, users can add layers to show zoning information, flood maps, trash pickup schedules and a wide range of other details. This is all presented graphically, using the latest mapping technology and integration with Google Maps to provide an aerial look at a property, neighborhood, or the City as a whole.

Users can quickly access similar information for nearby properties, generate their own list of abutters, lookup census data, and view sketches and images or any property in the City. It’s easy to use and comes equipped with a quick start guide, tutorial videos, and a full user’s manual.

Residents are encouraged to check it out, and leave comments, questions or concerns in the feedback section.”

“On Sunday members of the New Bedford Fire Department SAFE Program (Student Awareness Fire Education) conducted twenty-seven carseat installation and safety checks.

Several of our SAFE Program members recently obtained the certification to provide carseat inspections and installations. We will be offering the installations and inspections at future SAFE Program events.

Thank you to Pinnacle Auto Sales located at 1421 Cove Road in New Bedford for hosting this event #PinnacleAutoSalesNB.

Great work Fire & Life Safety Educator FF Anthony Poente and members of our SAFE Program!”-New Bedford Fire Department.

New Bedford Fire Department photo.

New Bedford Fire Department photo.

New Bedford Fire Department photo.

New Bedford Fire Department photo.

“The Association would like to highlight the hard work of our members, a recent graduate of the 89th RTT and their FTO assigned to SP Dartmouth, on the recent traffic stop that led to the recovery of 79 grams of fentanyl, 8 grams of crack cocaine, and a stun gun.

Great work Troopers!”-State Police Association of Massachusetts.

“It was a busy week of training for the NBFD’s Hazardous Materials Technicians and Marine Unit members.

On Monday, our Hazmat Technicians participated in the CTOS (Counter Terrorism Operations Support) Primary Screener/Personal Radiation Detector Course. The course was held at the Fort Tabor Community Center and hosted by the NBFD. The equipment, instructors, and training were made possible through Homeland Security’s Securing the Cities Program.

Members of the Marine Unit participated in a three-day Maritime Preventive Radiation/Nuclear Detection Course. Other participants included #CityofNewBedfordPoliceDepartment(Official) and members of the Buzzards Bay Marine Task Force. This course instructed public safety marine units how to properly detect and respond to the threat of or an actual release of radioactive material either accidentally or intentionally.

The NBFD and NBPD were awarded $130,000 in radiological and nuclear detection equipment through the Securing the Cities Program. The City of New Bedford is home to one of the largest fishing fleets in the country, a wind energy terminal, receives freight and container vessels from foreign ports, and a large amount of recreational vessel activity.

The NBFD’s Drone Unit also participated in both exercises. Rapid drone support and their forward deployment is essential in getting accurate scene assessments in either incident either through high resolution or thermal imaging views. The footage is available to be streamed to incident command posts or dispatch centers.

On Friday members of the Marine Unit and Marine 38 participated in a live oil boom deployment/oil spill exercise off the coast of Cuttyhunk Island. The New Bedford Police Department’s Marine Unit and the Fairhaven Harbormaster also participated. The training was made possible and coordinated through the MA Department of Environmental Protection.

These drills ensure area Marine Units are proficient in rapid deployment of oil spill control measures so environmental impact from a spill will be minimized.”-New Bedford Fire Department.

All photos by the New Bedford Fire Department:

“On April 27, 2024, the City of Everett, Alliance Security, Everett Fire Department, Everett Police Department, Massachusetts State Police, State Police Association for Massachusetts, and Tufts University Department of Public Safety, hosted G.I.R.L.S. Day 2024 in Everett. G.I.R.L.S. stands for Grit, Intelligence, Resilience, Leadership and Strength.

G.I.R.L.S. Day aims to foster meaningful connections between participants and female professionals, providing valuable mentorship and guidance for aspiring young leaders. Through interactive discussions and Q&A sessions, girls will have the opportunity to ask questions, seek advice, and envision themselves as future trailblazers in their chosen fields.

G.I.R.L.S. Day endeavors to forge genuine connections and provide invaluable mentorship and insights for aspiring young leaders.”-Massachusetts State Police.

All photos by the Massachusetts State Police:

“MARLBOROUGH – Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan has confirmed that Derek Thistle, 32 of Marlborough, was arraigned today in Middlesex Superior Court on charges of forcible rape of a child, aggravated rape of a child, indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 and open and gross lewdness in connection with allegedly sexually assaulting a male child who was known to him.

In July of 2023, the defendant was allegedly communicating with the victim on FaceTime when he exposed himself. The victim’s aunt, who was also in the home, allegedly also observed the FaceTime. Following the incident the victim disclosed that the defendant had sexually assaulted him when he was visiting the defendant’s home a few months earlier.

At his arraignment today, bail was set at $10,000 with conditions that he stay away from and have no contact with the victim or witnesses and that he have no unsupervised contact with minors. The defendant has reportedly been working as a school bus driver. Conditions were also set that he remain in Massachusetts and report weekly to the Probation Department. His next court date is May 17, 2024.

The prosecutor assigned to this case is Marissa Milero, the victim witness advocate is Cassie Aviles.”