Lynn man nabbed for series of thefts

LYNN – One of two suspects who allegedly stole tens of thousands of dollars of equipment from Breakheart Reservation in Saugus and the Babe Ruth Field in Lynn was arraigned on Monday.Justin Hayes, 19, of 20 Bulfinch St. #2, Lynn, was arrested and charged with two counts of receiving stolen property and possession of burglary tools on Saturday.Among the long list of items stolen was a $10,000 John Deere Gator tractor, which police said was taken from the Babe Ruth Field on O’Callaghan Way in Lynn and driven – apparently unnoticed – to the railroad tracks on the Saugus-Lynn city line where it became stuck on a downed telephone pole.A four-wheel all-terrain vehicle and a golf cart were also stolen from the Lynn field and discovered in some nearby brush not far from where the Gator tractor was found and recovered. All three vehicles are property of Lynn Youth Soccer and had their keys in the ignitions when they were stolen from locked garages after someone cut the locks, police said.Among the other items stolen from LYS were 11 walkie-talkies, a small hacksaw, donation canisters, a toilet tank cover and two cash boxes. A concession room was vandalized with black marker.Police said Hayes and his 18-year-old accomplice, who still has not been arrested, likely used bolt cutters to break into the garage, meeting room, concession room, announcer’s booth and roof over the announcer’s booth at Babe Ruth Field and stole a long list of LYS equipment on the night of Aug. 31 or early morning of Sept. 1.A fingerprint taken from the scene linked Hayes’ alleged accomplice to the theft and a warrant has been issued for his arrest, police said.Suspicion centered on the two young men after police confronted them when they tried to sell four chain saws to Cash Converters on Boston Street on Aug. 25. Police now say the chain saws were stolen from Breakheart Reservation at an earlier date.Police questioned the suspects about suspicious behavior before the attempted sale and initially let them go but not before confiscating the chain saws, which the suspects claimed they found in someone’s trash. Department of Conservation and Recreation official Joseph Falzone later identified the saws as Breakheart property.(Falzone, 43, of Nashua, N.H. was arrested Sept. 11 with Richard Stewart, 42, of Saugus for stealing $500,000 of material from the DCR in a separate incident.)Shortly after the Babe Ruth Field thefts occurred five days later, police went to Hayes’ house looking for his roommate – the suspect whose fingerprint was allegedly found at the scene.Police did not have a search warrant but said Hayes consented for officers to search the home. On the back porch, officers allegedly found a Stihl gas-powered backpack landscaping blower and a large gas-powered air compressor that were traced back to Breakheart.Inside Hayes’ bedroom, officers found a black bag marked “LYS” (Lynn Youth Soccer) containing a Dewalt cordless tool kit that was stolen from Breakheart, according to police, who said bolt cutters were found on the floor.Hayes was taken into custody on an arrest warrant around 7:30 p.m. Saturday after an officer said he was riding his bicycle near a car dealership on Harding Street, which aroused suspicion due to “a rash of recent break-ins” at Lynnway businesses.Hayes was only charged with the receiving stolen property from the items found in his bedroom. He was ordered held on $500 bail and expected to return to Lynn District Court Nov. 7 for a pre-trial hearing.