Town of Egremont Police

06/22/2019

We had two reported car breaks in the Egremont Plain Rd. area overnight . Please check your cars and let us know if there is an issue we need to be aware of so that we can investigate. If anyone saw someone suspicious in the area overnight or something that did not look right please call us and let us know so that we can also follow up on that.

Officer O’SULLIVAN is the investigating officer on these cases. If he is unavailable please leave a message at the station or ask for the duty officer to respond.

Unfortunately times have changed. Please be sure to secure your home and vehicles when away from them.

Thank you

Chief Josephson

05/22/2019

Unfortunately, phone scams are a never-ending issue across the country. Our area continues to be affected by this nuisance. Everyone has been doing a fantastic job in identifying these callers as predators and has taken the appropriate action. I would ask that everyone continue to be aware and informed thus reducing the opportunity of becoming a victim of these calls. We will continue to send out these warnings and information as listed below as we continue to support the community.

Recent scams:
IRS and Social Security scam- the caller may advise of monies owed to the IRS or a mistake in payments from Social Security which need to be returned. They often want you to pay at that moment to avoid prosecution or further action. The IRS/Social Security will never contact you by phone if there was an issue and even mailings are subject to verification by contacting your local IRS/SS office.

Robocalls- never return missed call from a number you do not recognize. Often if there is no answer, they hope for the homeowner to call back a missed call which charges your phone by the minute similar to the old (900) numbers. The latest scam is “farming” where a robot/computer program cold calls a number. If someone answers the number it is stored and sold to other scammers and organizations. This one call will now become 20+ unwanted calls which will continue to multiply,

Note…..if interested there are devices at Best Buy which will block robocalls and illegitimate calls which most find harassing. The device comes preloaded with thousands of numbers identified as scams and will continue to learn as you receive calls blocking them from future access.

05/17/2019

I would like to thank the community for their patience as we investigated the bus incident from Wednesday. Officers from Egremont and Sheffield put in a lot of work to make sure the investigation was accurate and complete before making a final determination. Numerous interviews with those involved on all sides of this event showed the event to be harmless and misunderstood. The elderly male taking the photos was actually a retired professional photographer taking photos of the area. He and his wife were in the area to visit their granddaughter who attends school in a surrounding community.

With all of this being said I would like to commend the students on the bus who had the courage to bring this to the attention to their bus driver. You should always be aware of your surroundings and trust your gut when faced with an event that makes you uneasy. Everyone performed admirably and the truth was discovered.

Chief Josephson

05/16/2019

Yesterday afternoon Officers received the report of a suspicious vehicle following one of our school buses for a short distance on Rt. 41 earlier in the day. One of the occupants was reported to have been taking pictures of students. This information made it to the Officer through several hands which makes tracking down and validating the information difficult but we are working through it. We have also been working with the Sheffield PD SRO to validate and confirm. This investigation remains open and we will release what we can when we can. Regardless of the outcome, we should always remain vigilant with our children and our community.

Chief's note….
I have also been made aware of Facebook conversations and email chains that have been making their rounds with incorrect and speculative information. I would ask that everyone please allow us to investigate before jumping to conclusions and spreading inaccurate information which could lead to unnecessary fear and panic. We are here for you and will see that the job is done.

Thank you

05/12/2019

05/10/2019

At Wednesday's COA luncheon, Chief Erik Josephson, Town of Egremont Police, received citations from Governor Baker and Lt. Governor Polito and from State Rep. Smitty Pignatelli and Speaker of the House Robert DeLeo for his work in starting the “Good Morning, Senior” program for Egremont's seniors. Lucinda Fenn-Vermeulen and Lou Ann Harvey presented Chief Josephson with the citations. Before presenting the citations, Bobbie Nussbaum spoke about the program which she uses every day.

05/06/2019

Egremont’s Police and Fire Departments have created a team to participate in a fundraiser for ALS research. The event will take place at Tanglewood on May 18 from 11am to 5pm. This posting is to get the word out for attendance and donations.

Open the link below to read more about this worthy event.

https://fundraise.als.net/arrestandextinguishevent

Once you open it, click on “Create/Join a Team”, then click on “Join a Team”, and select Egremont.

We're addressing an important issue that affects many people. Our mission is to spread awareness and raise money for solutions we have identified. We created this campaign for everyone to contribute at various impact levels. Be sure to review the ways you can make an impact and please share t ...

05/03/2019

Blacktop paving will take place on Boice Road in the Town of Egremont on Tuesday, May 7th throughout the day. Be prepared for some road closures and delays.

05/02/2019

Last month I made the announcement as to our partnership with the International Chiefs of Police (IACP) and their very successful “One Mind” campaign. We have since expanded this commitment with a team approach by joining with Great Barrington PD, The Brien Center, Lenox PD, Sheffield PD, Probation and parole and the Southern Berkshire District Court in a team approach to services with a clinician specifically designated for this program and officers working together in the field on designated days. We have high hopes for this endeavor and believe the services provided are a necessity in every community. We look forward to seeing what we can accomplish working together.

Chief Josephson

05/01/2019

05/01/2019

Despite unnecessary delays, our last full-time officer started today. Officer Matthew O’Sullivan comes to us full-time certified with experience from departments in eastern Massachusetts. Officer O’Sullivan is excited about this new opportunity and has already relocated to town to become part of the community. He will be riding/training with Officer Kolb and I over the next few weeks to learn the geography of the town and meet the public. If you see Officer Kolb and Officer O’Sullivan please give them a wave and say hello.

Chief Josephson

04/29/2019

The road flowers are already in full bloom. Please slow down in construction areas and give workers/flaggers/police officers the room they need to be safe.

Thanks in advance for your voluntary cooperation.

Chief Josephson