Crime & Safety

Officers Arrest Two After False Fire Alarm

Woonsocket Police arrested two people Sept. 15 at about 2 p.m. when they responded for a report of a false fire alarm at 126 Earle St., then wound up struggling with residents of the apartment building wielding knives during a safety check.

Officers Michael Voyer and Linden Karsner arrived on the scene and quickly took the alleged false alarm culprit, a reportedly intoxicated Loretta Bouche, 46, of 126 Earle St., Apt. 2L. She aided officers' case with the claim, "I pulled it, that (expletive) wouldn't let me in," according to Karsner's report. The woman was apparently upset because she had been kicked out of her apartment.

A resident told police there was an injured person in Bouche's apartment, and officers entered the building to investigate. Voyer and Karsner went to the apartment door and knocked, announcing themselves several times, but got no answer. 

Firefighters attempted to help the officers gain entry using a set of emergency Knox Box keys, but the locks had been changed recently and the emergency keys were not updated. One of the apartment's doors was unlocked, however, and as Voyer put his weight against the door, he felt someone pushing back. The officer caught a glimpse of a woman with a knife in hand, and immediately pushed the door open, according to his report. 

As the door opened, the woman fell, dropping the knife. Voyer, now inside, handcuffed the woman and ordered another man to lie on the floor, which the man obeyed. As he secured the two occupants, he heard Karsner ordering someone to give her his hands, and followed her voice into the living room, seeing the officer struggling with a man, later identified as Thomas Patrick Biagetti, 49, of 109 Arnold St.

Karsner yelled, "Knife," and Voyer saw a large kitchen knife on the floor less than a foot away from the man's head, his hand edging toward it. Voyer reportedly kicked the man in the face twice to keep him from the knife, after which he and Karsner were able to subdue and arrest him.

Biagetti was charged with simple assault and resisting arrest. Bouche was charged with creating a false fire alarm. 


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