BRISTOL — Bristol police cited Rachael Cormicle, 26, of Bristol for false pretenses on March 13.
The police allege that on two occasions she had convinced cashiers at Shaw’s Supermarket that she had purchased items in the store that were faulty or not what she wanted, when, in actuality, she hadn’t actually purchased the items. The store gave her a $40 gift card on one occasion and a $70 gift card on another, said Police Chief Kevin Gibbs.
According to Gibbs, Cormicle simply went to an aisle in the store, picked up some items and took them to the cashier. She then told the cashier that she purchased the items, and although she didn’t have a receipt, she wanted compensation for them because she claimed they were either faulty or the wrong item.
In other police activity from the past two weeks, the Bristol police:
•  On March 12 responded to a burglary on Spring Street. A Nintendo went missing. No suspects have been identified.
•  On March 12 assisted the Vermont State Police with a welfare check on Route 116.
•  On March 17 responded with VSPto a report of an underage drinking party on Frosty Lane in Bridport.
“They had to use a state SUV to get to the scene,” said Gibbs. “Four underage people were found and were issued possession-of-malt-beverage-by-minor notices. A number of minors fled into the woods. Some follow up is being conducted to figure out who gave alcohol to the minors.”
•  On March 18 around 3 p.m. responded to an alarm at the Lathrop Band Mill, and found the business secure. Police said  two pigeons got into one of the buildings and set off motion alarms.
•  On March 18 arrested Paul Derrick, 38, of Charlotte for driving with a suspended license. An officer was traveling northbound up Monkton Road behind Derrick’s car at 10:20 p.m. Derrick then turned into the Bristol Pond boat launch and turned off his lights. The officer investigated found that Derrick’s license was suspended and also ticketed him for plates that didn’t belong to the car, operating an unregistered vehicle, operating an uninsured vehicle and an inspection sticker that was not assigned to the car.
•  On March 19 received a report that two women were walking with an infant in the middle of the road on Route 116 by Lord’s Prayer Rock. They were gone upon arrival.
•  On March 19 received a report of a small fire at or near the Hub teen center. Hub staff burned a number of objects in the fire pit, one being a couch. Although the Hub informed the fire warden about the burning and received permission, Gibbs said the staff was not given permission to burn “non-burnable stuff” like a couch. The Hub staff was warned against burning such objects in the future.
•  On March 19 assisted a state trooper on Route 116 south of the police district to investigate a report of an assault with injuries.
•  On March 20 investigated a report of a man sleeping in the park. The subject was located by the fountain sleeping, and he indicated he had been up all night protecting and fighting people. The officer reported that the man appeared confused and nothing he said made sense. The man advised he was fine and was simply sun bathing.
•  On March 20 received a report of a male threatening a female on the town green. Gibbs went to the green and a large group of people fanned out. He spoke with the woman, who said the man was threatening her because he thought she stole his drugs. She claims she did not steal his drugs and that the thief was a man who is now in jail. The man who allegedly threatened her fled the scene when Gibbs arrived. Gibbs told the woman that he would warn the man against disorderly conduct, but Gibbs on Tuesday said he had not yet seen the man.
•  On March 20 went to the Bristol branch of the National Bank of Middlebury to deal with a fraud claim. Police said a customer deposited 12 checks totaling thousands of dollars, but none of the checks linked to bank accounts that had sufficient funds. The police are still investigating.
•  On March 20 received a report from a Munsill Avenue resident that her black and white cat was stolen by her neighbor. The neighbor said he had fed the cat for years, but took the cat back to its owner.
•  On March 21 dealt with a potentially rabid raccoon outside Bristol Elementary. Upon arrival, two janitors told the officer that some raccoons ran into the storm drain. The officer and janitors barricaded the opening in the storm drain, so the raccoons would have to exit elsewhere. Gibbs said that if the raccoon had rabies it would be dead within three days.
•  On March 21 searched for an intoxicated man at a South Street residence — the same man who was found sunbathing on the green the previous day. The resident reported that he hadn’t seen the man in more than five days, but the last time he saw him, the man stabbed his wall with a corkscrew.
Later that day, the police received a report of the man on East Street. He was found sitting on a bench in front of the former Village Corner Store. He was taken into protective custody without incident and transported to the New Haven state police barracks, where Counseling Service of Addison County came to assist. The counseling service had called the police several days earlier to inform them that this man was a potential danger to himself and others, said Gibbs.
A county sheriff’s deputy then transported the man to Fletcher Allen Health Care for an examination.
•  On March 22 met with Addison County Transit Resources representatives regarding the establishment of a Route 116 bus route. The bus stops will likely be located on West Street in front of the Merchant’s Bank for northbound traffic and in front of St. Ambrose Church for southbound traffic, said Gibbs.
•  On March 22 received a report of a hypodermic needle in a North Street resident’s lawn. While the homeowner was doing yard work and his young child was playing, the needle was discovered. Gibbs believes the needle was related to heroin use and encourages citizens to contact Bristol police about such incidents, even if the Vermont State Police dispatcher doesn’t think it’s necessary.
“The individual in this case had actually called our number and were told by a state dispatcher to just dispose of the needle — that we didn’t need to know,” said Gibbs incredulously. “I would encourage people if they have a complaint like this and they want to speak to an officer, they should insist on talking to an officer.”
•  On March 22 received a report from an East Street resident about a prowler she had seen behind her apartment two days earlier. She advised that around 8:15 p.m., on March 20, a man was loitering in the parking lot behind her house. He was described as a tall man in his early 20s, wearing dark clothing, shorts and a black knit cap. The woman’s daughter arrived an hour later and confirmed that the man was still there.
“We encourage people to call us immediately when they see suspicious activity,” said Gibbs.
•  On March 22 found a dog left in a vehicle on the north side of the town green. It was discovered the dog had been there all day while the subject was working. The temperature was above 80 degrees and the windows were inched open, said Gibbs. The subject was warned against cruelty to animals and was told that the dog would be seized if such treatment persisted.
•  On March 24 found a dog that matched the description of a missing dog. The dog and the owner were reunited, and the owner was slapped with a fine for boarding the dog overnight and letting his dog stray.
•  On March 24 came across someone an officer knew had been incarcerated for a sex crime. After a conversation with him, the officer discovered the man was not living where he should have been. Since the person was living outside the Bristol Police District, the officer contacted the state police to deal with the man, who had failed to properly register as a sex offender.
•  On March 25 a collection of hypodermic needles were found by the Bristol Pond launch.
•  On March 25 responded to a dispute on the town green. “Apparently one guy wanted to knock all of the teeth out of the other person,” said Gibbs.
The two individuals were related and their altercation reportedly stemmed from a dispute over how to best discipline a child. No police action was taken.
•  On March 25 stopped a driver whose car smelled of marijuana. The driver indicated that a person who was in the car earlier had smoked the substance, but there wasn’t any in the car. The officer then received a call from the state police and assisted troopers with a vehicle on Route 116, south of the village. The officers found heroin paraphernalia, marijuana and other drug paraphernalia.
The officer’s report did not indicate why the first man was stopped, and it appears he wasn’t charged with anything, said Gibbs.