Felon turns self in

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 20:01:00 GMT

Candia police finally caught up with a convicted felon who brandished a gun at a house party in July and robbed a guest of cash, a gold necklace and a watch.

Richard Menczywor, 20, turned himself in to police after his father, who has the same name, orchestrated a meeting, police said. An Auburn District Court judge set his bail at $100,000 cash on charges of armed robbery, felon in possession of a weapon and felony reckless conduct.

In addition to the Candia charges, said Chief Mike McGillen, Menczywor faces additional charges in probation violations.

In July, police got a call at around 2:30 a.m. from a party guest at Menczywor’s father’s residence at 585 Chester Turnpike, reporting the holdup.

Richard Menczywor Sr. was on his honeymoon at the time of the incident and said he was unaware of what was going on at his home.

Candia, Hooksett, Raymond and state police scoured the scene for the younger Menczywor, who had fled. A canine tracked the scent and found the suspect’s shoes in the woods nearby.

On Nov. 13 police got a call from Menczywor’s father saying the suspect was at his residence and was ready to turn himself in to police.

McGillen said it is unclear exactly where Menczywor spent his four months on the run. Calls to family members in Manchester led police to believe the family knew where Menczywor was.

“They all knew we were looking for him,” McGillen said, but added that police were unable to verify his whereabouts.

Menczywor is facing state charges because he was out on probation from a prior conviction in Hillsborough Superior Court for robbery at the time of the robbery in Candia.

He was brought to the Hillsborough County Department of Corrections to await his court date.

If convicted, Menczywor faces a seven-year prison sentence for the Class B weapon possession felony. For the armed robbery charge, he faces a maximum sentence of 20 years.

Calls up – Police activity increases while department budget cut

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 19:51:00 GMT

BY SUSAN WARE

A typical week for the police in Candia includes a stolen F-350 pick-up truck crashing into a telephone pole and snapping it in half, leaving the transformer in the middle of the road; copper pipes stolen from vacant homes; a domestic assault arrest or two, several motor vehicle stops on Route 101 and new evidence in a 10-year-old felonious sexual assault case that needs investigating.

“Our numbers are way up over this time last year. At times it has been tough on my guys. We have a lot going on,” said Candia Police Chief Michael McGillen.

In 2006, from January through July, Candia police responded to 1,529 offenses.

In 2007, from January through July, they have responded to 1,727 offenses. An offense can be anything such as a suspicious vehicle, an open door to an assault, burglary or worse.

The rise in crime is tough on this small, six-officer department, which is already down one full-time officer, because in Candia, officers do it all. There are no detectives or other specialty departments, so when an officer responds to a call, they own it until the end.

Last year, McGillen lost a full-time officer who wanted a city assignment, and the town Budget Committee cut his payroll for two part-time officers, which provide crucial overlap during busy shifts, like Friday and Saturday nights.

He is currently searching for a full-time officer who wants to work in a rural setting and is going to ask the Budget Committee to reinstate funding for the two part-time officers. He also wants his budget for a new cruiser reinstated.

“New equipment is good for morale and enables us to do our job better. Replacing a cruiser every year is not a luxury, but a necessity,” said McGillen.

Seeming quiet on the surface, few days are spent patrolling Candia streets.

“The funny thing is that when some people see us doing our job by randomly patrolling neighborhoods, they think we have nothing to do,” said McGillen.

Candia has been prime for daytime break-ins and McGillen said that it is proven that the presence of cruisers deters would-be thieves.

McGillen is what he calls a working chief. He responds to calls and is often the first on the scene to back up his officers, especially when it is an underage party.

“Breaking up an underage party is chaos. Not only do you have to deal with all of the intoxicated minors, but later it is all the discontented parents. We can’t win,” said McGillen.

Responding to a call for an underage party strains resources and requires Candia to call in backup from neighboring towns.

When teenagers see police cruisers arrive, McGillen said that most panic and run, they jump off decks, out of second-story windows, all leaving their vehicles behind.

Candia police have a policy to tow all vehicles found at an underage party.

“We have to tow because later on the kids sneak back to their cars and if one of them gets behind the wheel and crashes, it will all come back on us,” said McGillen.

Another strain is domestic assault. On July 18 an officer responded to a domestic assault on Chester Road. The husband was accused of assaulting his wife and breaking items in the home, so the responding officer arrested him. The only officer on duty at the time, this took him off the street for two hours.

“Some people really don’t realize all that we do. Last year, residents did turn out in support of the department during the budget process. We are going to need that support again this year,” said McGillen.

Candia News : crime

Felon turns self in

Calls up – Police activity increases while department budget cut