At approximately 2:40am on Friday February 25, 2011, officers from District B-3 (Mattapan) responded to a radio call for an incident on Morton St. On arrival, officers spoke with several concerned citizens who stated that it sounded like a neighbor was banging on the floor with a hammer. They indicated that the banging had been persistent for approximately four hours. While inside the residence, the officers also heard the banging noise which sounded like it was coming from inside the wall of the apartment. Officers spoke to additional residents in the building who all denied making the noise.
Officers, being familiar with the area, knew that a Boston Check Cashing Inc (1170 Blue Hill Av.) was located below the apartment on Morton Street. Officers were also aware that an empty building is adjacent to the check cashing store and has had issues with squatters in the past. In order to ensure the security of the business, officers visually inspected the checks cashing store from Blue Hill Ave. before continuing to the empty building. Officers located an unsecured rear door and entered the empty building. Immediately upon entering, an officer observed a hole that had been cut through the wall that the empty building shared with the check cashing business. Through the hole, officers observed a black jacket draped over the sharp metal edge. At this point officers alerted supervisors to the situation, and the possibility of a suspect attempting to gain entry through the wall.
Multiple B-3 units responded to assist in securing the perimeter around the buildings. A K9 officer assisted by his K9 (Nitro) entered the building. K9 Nitro indicated that an individual may be present in the building but was unable to locate anyone. A closer inspection of the hole revealed a brown back pack on the ground and brick fragments where it appeared someone had attempted to chisel through the check cashing wall.
Boston Fire Department personnel also responded and assisted officers by opening the hole in the wall to allow Nitro and officers access to the area. The K9 officer and Nitro, along with an additional officer entered the small space between the two walls. It was there that Nitro located an individual wedged around a corner and hiding in a small space. At that time, an officer gave the suspect verbal commands. The suspect at this point was screaming and crying stating repeatedly \”I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I did it. Don’t let him bite me\”.
The suspect was hand cuffed and removed from the space between the walls. The suspect, identified as Frandy Jean, 17, of Dorchester, was charged with Breaking and Entering/ Commercial Business at Night, and Possession of Burglarious Tools.