Police Log

295 crash victim ID’d

Rhode Island State Police have identified the man killed in a crash on Route 295 in town earlier this month.

Shawn Riccio, 26, of 192 Marshall Road in Woonsocket, was traveling south in the area of Greenville Avenue at approximately 5 a.m. on June 10 when his GMC SUV struck a deer. He lost control of the vehicle, which rolled over several times and landed on its passenger side. He was not wearing a seatbelt at the time, and was ejected from the vehicle.

State police said the investigation of the incident has concluded.

Police: Man used ladder in early-morning home break-in

A suspect was arrested after a break-in at a home on Pezzi Street last week.

Andy Rosario, 20, of 24 Minto St. in Providence, is charged with a felony count of breaking and entering into a dwelling.

In his narrative report, Patrolman Jared DeAngelis states he responded to the Pezzi Street area at approximately 7:30 a.m. on June 16 after being notified of a break-in that had just occurred. An initial description provided by dispatch indicated the suspect was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and carrying a red duffle bag.

DeAngelis indicates he and other officers observed a man – later identified as Rosario – who matched the description walking west on George Waterman Road. The man was detained, and a witness who was brought to the scene identified him as the suspect.

The man was then placed under arrest, and his bag was found to contain a Nintendo Wii with several games, an iPad, an iPod, a Chromebook laptop, and a Louis Vitton handbag.

DeAngelis writes that according to witnesses, the suspect took a ladder from a yard shortly after 5:30 a.m. and used it to enter the second-floor window of an adjacent home. A resident of the adjacent home noticed the ladder was missing, and observed it in the neighbor’s yard. The resident then went next door and rang the doorbell, at which point residents of the home that was broken into saw the suspect jump out of a rear first-floor window.

Town man sentenced for unemployment benefit fraud

A Johnston man has pleaded nolo contendere in Superior Court to charges he committed unemployment insurance benefit fraud.

Kevin Rafferty, 37, entered the plea to one count of obtaining money under false pretenses (over $1,500). He was sentenced to five years’ probation, and order to pay the state $10,104 in restitution.

According to the office of Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin, prosecutors were prepared to prove that between March 15, 2008, and June 4, 2011, Rafferty improperly received unemployment benefits while working for Roof Doctor Inc. in Warwick.

“My office continues to hold those individuals accountable who fraudulently game the system at the expense of risking the integrity of our unemployment insurance system, which is there as a safety net for those who become unemployed,” Kilmartin said through a statement. “Our partnership with [the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training] showcases the fiscal benefits that result when state agencies work together to root out fraud and abuse.”