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Adams Police Take Armed Man Into Custody After Standoff

Staff Reports

The Berkshire Special Response Team was called in to help defuse the situation. 
ADAMS, Mass. —— Police defused a possibly dangerous situation with a man described as "despondent" on Friday night.
 
The individual, whose name has not been released, was taken into custody just before 7 p.m. and transported to Berkshire Medical Center for evaluation.
 
The incident began around 4:45 p.m. when a third party called to report the individual was in crisis. The apartment building he was in was evacuated. 
 
It was reported over the scanner as a "barricaded homicidal male in a structure that is possibly armed."
 
Summer Street between Winter and Center was blocked off to traffic, as well as the side streets. Massachusetts State Police and the Berkshire Special Response Team were called to the scene.
 
Officers were able to make contact with the individual by phone and a negotiator with the response team was able to convince him to surrender.
 
At about 6:45 a number of officers appeared on the side and front of the building. A few minutes later the suspect was being escorted by four officers to a waiting police cruiser.
 
The scene was cleared by 7:30.
 
Police said the man did have a firearm. No charges have been filed at this time. No one was injured.
 
This article will be updated with more information.
     

Superior Court Briefs: Dec. 14 - Dec. 15

Staff Reports
Cases heard before Judge Daniel Ford on Wednesday, Dec. 14.
 
Max Bohan, 26, of Pittsfield had not guilty pleas entered on his behalf on single counts of possession of heroin with intent to distribute and operating a motor vehicle with a suspended license.
 
He was released on $10,000 bail. The charges stem from a motor vehicle stop in Pittsfield on September 26, 2016.
 
Cases heard before Judge Daniel Ford on Thursday, Dec. 15.
 
Michael Dion, 32, of Pittsfield pleaded guilty to a single count of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.
 
He was ordered to serve two and a half years at the Franklin County House of Correction.
 
The charges stem from a motor vehicle stop in Pittsfield on September 8, 2015. Single counts of trafficking in cocaine and conspiracy to violate drug laws were dismissed by the state.
     

Woman Kidnapped And Robbed From Pittsfield Shopping Center

Staff Reports
PITTSFIELD, Mass. - A woman was abducted from the Coltsville Shopping District and robbed early Wednesday morning. 
 
Police say at about 7:30 a.m. the 52-year-old victim was kidnapped by two men and transported to Springside Park, where she was robbed and then released unharmed. On Thursday, Police arrested 36-year-old Joseph Loftus for the crime but the other man remains on the loose.
 
Loftus will now face kidnapping, masked armed robbery, and larceny over $250 charged in Central Berkshire District Court. He'll be arraigned on Friday. 
 
Police are still looking for any information about the incident and are asking anyone who has any or may have witnessed it to contact the detective bureau at 448-9708, or anonymously through the drug tips hotline at 413-448-9708 or texting PITTIP and the message to 857411. 
     

Four Arrested After Pittsfield Shooting

Staff Reports

Four individuals were detained at gunpoint by police on Monday after reports of shots fired. Above is one of two weapons found inside their vehicle.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Four individuals were arrested Monday night after a shooting in the Lincoln Street area.
 
Police say Devin Newman, 27, of Pittsfield, Derrick Saunders, 21, of Pittsfield, Terry Martizna, 26, of Lanesborough, and Justin Luis Lopez, 22, of Bronx, N.Y., were arrested on gun-related charges.
 
Police Sgt. Nicholas DeSantis heard numerous gun shots at about 9:45 p.m. from where his cruiser was parked near Silver Lake Boulevard. He then alerted other officers who quickly went to the area.
 
DeSantis saw a vehicle speeding onto Second Street from Orchard Street, which he recognized from an earlier report of shots fired. He turned his lights on to stop the vehicle and it drove to the rear of a Second Street residence. The four occupants were detained at gunpoint by DeSantis and additional officers arrived on scene. 
 
Police found two handguns inside the vehicle and the four were arrested. A search of a section of Orchard Street found 11 shell casing. The incident remains under investigation.
     

Great Barrington Fire Fights House Blaze Twice

Great Barrington Fire DepartmentCommunity Submission

The fire left the home's seven residents displaced.

GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — Firefighters rescued an elderly man from a house fire Saturday afternoon from a two-alarm fire caused by cooking and had to return to the home on Sunday morning after a second fire ignited.

The home owned by Ruby Fuller for 50 years is a total loss. A GoFundMe page has been set up for the retired caretaker and foster parent, who had children living in the house with her. A total of seven people have been displaced.

According to Chief Charles Burger, the department responded on Saturday at 2:51 p.m. to 26 Dresser Ave. on a report of a kitchen stove fire at the two-story, wood frame, single-family home.

Upon arrival, firefighters and police officers, who also arrived on scene, learned that a 76-year-old man was trapped inside. Heavy smoke and flames engulfed the first floor of the home, with extension to the second floor.

Police, with assistance from a firefighter, were able to rescue the man by pulling him out of the house through a first-floor window. The man was then transported by Southern Berkshire Ambulance to Fairview Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

A second alarm was struck as firefighters on Engine 3 made an aggressive attack on the first floor, verifying the remaining six occupants were out of the home, and then extinguishing the blaze 15 minutes later.

Crews from Sheffield, Egremont, Monterey, Stockbridge, and Lenox Fire Departments also responded to assist, along with the Hinsdale Fire Department's rehab truck and the Great Barrington support group, which is made up of wives and mothers of firefighters who provide food and water to crews. Firefighters remained on scene for several hours overhauling the building before clearing the scene around 7 p.m.

One firefighter from Great Barrington suffered non-life threatening injuries, and was treated and released from the hospital later that day.  

Great Barrington firefighters continued to make regular checks of the home throughout the night and into the morning. A half hour after one of their checks, on Sunday, Dec. 12, around 11 a.m., firefighters received a 911 call that the home had once again caught fire.

Upon firefighters' arrival to the scene, they saw that the house was completely engulfed in flames, with fire coming out of every window. The Great Barrington Fire Department and the state fire marshal's office are currently still at the residence putting out hot spots.

The home is completely destroyed. The American Red Cross is working with the seven displaced residents to provide temporary housing.

Additionally, the Multicultural BRIDGE groups is working to provide meals, transportation and services to the family. Residents wishing to help out can donate through the GoFundMe page.

"This is an extremely unfortunate situation, where one family lost their home and all of their belongings in one day," Chief Burger said. "We encourage anyone who can help make this family's holiday as special as always, to please donate."

The origin and cause of the second fire remain under investigation by the Great Barrington Fire Department and state fire marshal's office.

     
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