Public safety report: Man claiming to be special agent storms office building

An Auburndale man was arrested after storming into an office building on Third Avenue. At 9:09 p.m. on Nov. 20, police responded to 75 Third Ave. to reports of a male wearing sunglasses who had gained entry to an office building in the plaza. A second call came in from a worker from a Transamerica insurance company office who reported the male was now on the third floor. 

According to police reports detailing the incident, the worker had seen the man trying to enter the office and asked him what he needed. At this point the man entered the office, grabbed the worker by the collar of his shirt and pushed him against the wall while screaming that the worker was trespassing.

Responding officers located the man and reported that he appeared to be pretending to adjust a painting on the wall. When addressed, he slowly turned toward the officers and began to walk quickly at them while loudly stating that the people in the office building were trespassing on his property and weren’t paying rent. Officers reported that they asked the man to stay still until they could figure out what was going on. Officers also reported that when they kept him from leaving, he told them that he was a special agent and rattled off a series of numbers that he said were his badge number.

Officers got a hold of one of the man’s arms and told him he needed to calm down and wasn’t free to leave. They reported that the man then began to scream that he was the chief of the Newton Police Department and that the officers should get their hands off him. 

Responding officers also reported that the man threatened to punch them, eventually raising his arm and clenching his fist like he was about to throw a punch. 

Officers reportedly placed the man under arrest at that point. 

The man, identified as a 40-year-old Auburndale resident, was charged with assault and resisting arrest as well as assault and battery on a person over 60 years old for his encounter with the Transamerica office worker. According to police, none of the identity claims he made were credible and that the individual appeared to be suffering a mental health issue.

A summary of police and fire activity from Nov. 20–25 is as follows

On Nov. 20 at 9:06 p.m., police, EMS and the Waltham Fire Department responded to the intersection of Cushing and Lowell streets where a car had struck an e-bike. The operator of the e-bike had small cuts near his left eye and upper lip but told emergency workers that he was fine and refused medical attention. The operator of the car wasn’t injured, but the car itself was damaged from the impact. Upon investigation, the operator of the car was determined not to be at fault because it had the right of way.

On Nov. 21 at 2:49 a.m., police responded to an apartment on Garden Circle. The reporting party stated that she and her husband awoke to a man standing in their bedroom shining a flashlight at them. When she began to scream, the man ran out of the bedroom and out the back door onto the Waltham Rail Trail. It was determined that the man had gained entry to the apartment through the kitchen window. The matter is under investigation.

On Nov. 21 at 9:48 a.m. a man came to the front counter of the Waltham police station to report that he’d fallen victim to a cryptocurrency scam. He told police that a woman had contacted him via WhatsApp and messaged him a link to invest in cryptocurrency. In total, the man invested $400,000, which grew to $6 million. When he tried to withdraw the money on Nov. 19, he was told his account was frozen until he paid a 3% tax to the IRS. The man reported the incident to the FBI, who told him to report it to his local police department as well. Both the FBI and the Waltham Police Department are investigating.

On Nov. 23 at 1:11 a.m., an officer observed two cars in the parking lot of the Metropolitan Parkway administration building owned by the City of Waltham. The building is marked with several no trespass signs. The officer heard what sounded like a door being kicked down and glass being smashed from inside the building. Upon inspection, the plywood that had been blocking the front entrance of the building was broken. While the officer was surveying the building, 10 people emerged from the building through the front entrance. Members of the group said they had heard about the building online and were exploring it. They will all be summoned to court for breaking and entering the building.

On Nov. 25 at 8:57 p.m., a car struck a pedestrian at the intersection of Common and School streets. A pedestrian was crossing School Street in a marked crosswalk when the car made a left turn off Common Street. The operator of the car reportedly didn’t see the pedestrian until the pedestrian was on the hood of the car. Police did not comment on whether either party sustained injuries.

All information was obtained from spokespeople with the Waltham Police Department, the publicly available police blotter and police reports available at Waltham District Court.