Two workers installing a tilt-up photovoltaic array on a roof near Poughkeepsie, N.Y. (Lucas Braun)

As the Katonah-Lewisboro school board weighs a proposal for solar panels, some board members have raised concerns that the plan could cause unique hazards for firefighters in certain scenarios.

“From my perspective, the Sustainability Committee is continuing to perform due diligence on the benefits and costs associated with entering into a Power Purchase Agreement with SolarCity,” board president Marjorie Schiff told The Ledger in a statement. “Committee members are aware of concerns related to a potential impact on fire safety and we are assessing whether risk exists. Of course the safety and well being of students and staff outweighs any savings in electric costs or greenhouse emissions!”

• Solar energy may shine savings on school district

The district is considering a 20-year contract with SolarCity to add solar panels to John Jay High School, John Jay Middle School, and Increase Miller Elementary School. The safety issue was first raised publicly by board member Richard Stone at an early-morning board meeting on Nov. 18, when he cited instances in which solar panels were blamed for hindering firefighters’ abilities to respond to fires.

Solar City has not responded to multiple requests for comment on the potential dangers solar panels pose in fire scenarios.

Firefighters agree

Responses on the dangers of solar panels were nearly identical from the four local volunteer fire departments — Vista, South Salem, Goldens Bridge, and Katonah — with some of the departments reporting modest or planned training for dealing with fires on structures that have solar energy installations on the roofs.

“The rule of thumb is to treat solar panels as live electricity, because even when the electrical power has been turned off, the system stays energized since the cells are extremely sensitive to light, including the floodlights we use to illuminate the scene,” said Goldens Bridge First Assistant Chief Al Melillo.

South Salem Fire Chief Ian Llewellyn said a member of his department will be attending a county fire training course next week specifically for solar panel fire scenarios, and will be sharing the information with the rest of the department.

“Virtually all of the Officers in our Department have received training and completion certificates in solar panel fire response through training classes provided by the New York State Office of Fire Prevention, which is the training hub of the state,” Mr. Melillo said. “We have also been proactive, for example, participating in educational webinars sponsored by the manufacturers of solar panels that are installed on residences in the community. We even stop at the homes and investigate, and contact the manufacturers so we can have a better understanding.”

While it is not a requirement for residents to notify their local fire departments, Mr. Llewellyn said that South Salem has kept records of which homes have solar panels and is fully aware of the solar panels currently used on some of the Katonah-Lewisboro school district buildings.

Yet even with the location of some solar panels known, fire departments report a variety of possible issues with solar energy, in addition to electric shock.

“This limits the use of certain firefighting techniques, such as vertical ventilation — cutting a hole in the roof to vent the fire,” Mr. Melillo said. “We can’t cut through the panels or walk on a roof without risking electrical shock. It’s particularly hazardous when responding to a fire in the middle of the night. The solar panels blend into the roof and there are no indicators to forewarn us.”

William Dingee, safety officer and former chief of the Vista Fire Department and director of fire services on the Westchester County Fire Advisory Board, said there is a growing concern regarding solar panels, and that upcoming county training courses that cover solar panel scenarios are completely full.

Departments throughout Lewisboro see solar panels as a part of future fire scenarios that they will have to adapt to as more homes invest in sustainable green energy as the technology becomes more affordable.

“I feel the trend will continue,” said First Assistant Chief Dean Pappas of the Katonah Fire Department. “It limits our options, but we are still going to do everything we can to come up with possible scenarios, but I wouldn’t want to make people feel their house is in more danger because of solar panels.”

Lewisboro police have repeatedly reported to a Goldens Bridge home on West Main Street for an ongoing dispute between two families in a multi-family home. (Reece Alvarez)

West Main Street in Goldens Bridge served as a kind of second home for Lewisboro police last week, when they responded to seven calls to an ongoing civil dispute between two neighbors.

The dispute involves two parties who live in the same house, one upstairs and one downstairs.

The long-running quarrel (police were last called to the house in September for a noise complaint, according to police reports) was reignited on Monday, Nov. 17, with a harassment complaint from the family that lives downstairs.

According to police reports, the family downstairs said that the female tenant who lives upstairs is being evicted.

A member of the family told police on Nov. 17 that the female tenant’s father was staying with her and that the father threatened the family member from downstairs.

Police returned the next morning, on Tuesday, Nov. 18, when a different member of the family downstairs said she woke up and walked outside and found posters on her patio and on the tenant’s deck.

The poster on the tenant’s deck read “I WIN,” and the posters on the family’s patio included smiley faces.

Police were called back later that day because the upstairs tenant’s car in the driveway was blocking the car of one of the family members from downstairs.

Police asked the tenant to move her car.

The tension peaked on Wednesday, Nov. 19, when police responded to four separate calls at the house.

Three calls were made by the downstairs family, which complained about loud music being played by the upstairs tenant, who made the other call to police, alleging loud noise from downstairs.

Police twice heard extremely loud music from the tenant upstairs, and issued her a summons to appear in Lewisboro Justice Court on Dec. 8 for a noise violation.

This multi-family home on Smith Ridge Road in South Salem was the focus of a heroin investigation tht led to the arrest of Bedford’s Michael Hall, who was living on the top floor and was arrested by Lewisboro police officer David Alfano on Nov. 14. (Courtesy of the Lewisboro Police Department)

This year has seen a combination of heroin-related arrests, deaths and overdoses, with events culminating most recently in the arrest of a South Salem resident for selling the drug from his apartment on Smith Ridge Road.

“Heroin is a very big problem, and anyone who tells you it isn’t is behaving like an ostrich,” Town Supervisor Peter Parsons said.

Heroin is not just a big problem, but a local problem as well, Mr. Parsons said.

“I believe we have a problem. Is it as bad as the problem in the Bronx? No, but do we need to be very aware of it? Yes, and we need to be doing our best to reduce it,” he said.

To do that, Mr. Parsons and police Chief Frank Secret approved police officer David Alfano to receive additional training and work with a multi-department task force with the Westchester County narcotics unit, which led to Mr. Alfano making the arrest in South Salem of Bedford’s Michael Hall, a 26-year-old who police said was living in an apartment at the Smith Ridge Road home.

Speaking with The Ledger this week, Mr. Alfano said that he became aware of the drug activity at the residence on Smith Ridge Road beginning in early October through informants from prior arrests.

The investigation included surveillance of the residence and its frequent visitors, which included individuals from as far away as Rockland County and Mahopac to nearby Fairfield County in Connecticut, as well as residents of Lewisboro, though the visitors to the home apartment were “mostly 23 and up,” he said.

“I was surprised at how many people were coming and going,” he said.

A few weeks after conducting surveillance, Mr. Alfano said the police department began receiving calls of “hand-to-hand transfers” and other suspicious activity occurring at the residence.

The bust came on Nov. 14 and yielded 130 glassine envelopes of heroin, selling for $10 to $20 per bag, according to the county.

Heroin purchased in the New York City boroughs such as the Bronx can be sold for double the price in Westchester County, Mr. Alfano said.

There has been national and county attention on the increasing use of heroin, and a suspicion that tighter restrictions on prescription pain medicine has led to increased use of heroin — a theory Mr. Alfano agrees with.

A trend?

According to Chief Secret, the South Salem arrest was the largest amount of heroin the department has dealt with, and from

word of mouth from drug users the heroin was “pretty strong,” Mr. Alfano said.

Police recovered130 glassine envelopes of heroin packaged in $10 to $20 units from the Nov. 14 arrest of a Bedford man living on Smith Ridge Road in South Salem.

Toxicology reports may take months and will not determine the potency of the drug, but investigations into heroin and drug-related activity in town are ongoing, he said.

“Is heroin use getting worse? No, I don’t think so,” Chief Secret said. “This is just a guy, this is one individual. There is no community that is immune to heroin, and anyone who thinks ‘not in my town’ is being unrealistic — they’ve got their head in the sand.”

This year there have been at least six heroin-related incidents involving Lewisboro or its residents, including repeated emergency calls to the Lewisboro Volunteer Ambulance Corps (LVAC) to a home in the Three Lakes region of South Salem for “heroin overdose” and “heroin addict suicidal” calls. A 25-year-old South Salem man died earlier this year from acute heroin intoxication, according to the county medical examiner’s office.

In June state police arrested a pair of 29-year-old South Salem residents traveling in Cairo, N.Y., for possession of 225 bags of heroin, 15 grams of cocaine and several OxyContin pills, and the two were charged with intent to distribute.

Despite what may seem like a rash of incidents this year, LVAC Capt. Bob Stoddard, a veteran of the corps, was adamant that his emergency response crews have not seen an increase in calls over the past few years for heroin-related incidents.

The Toys For Tots drive is led by the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and locally the Westchester County Detachment of the Marine Corps League.

With Thanksgiving in the rear view, Christmas ahead, and Giving Tuesday — a globally recognized day of charity — passing this week, the local Toys for Tots drive led by the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and the Westchester County Detachment of the Marine Corps League is in full swing. The campaign collects donations with the support of local fire departments, including Goldens Bridge, Katonah, South Salem, and Vista.

“Every year we seem to get more and more. The first year we got 400 toys, and I think last year a little more — I’d like to say 500,” said Mike Peck, a lieutenant with the Vista Fire Department and lead organizer of the multi-department effort. “It is like a revolving door with people coming in and dropping off toys.”

Boom year

Lucian Caldara, a Korean War veteran serving with the Marines, has been working with Toys for Tots since 1965 and has been the program’s Westchester County coordinator for more than 15 years.

“We are doing excellent,” he said. “Our room at Westy’s is full and we have been pumping out to the social service agencies.”

To ensure that children who are most in need, from infants to teens, receive gifts for Christmas, the program works directly with social service agencies such as family and child services and children’s homes, Mr. Caldara said.

“We try to get the families what they really need, like clothing, which is more important for many kids rather than a pull toy,” Mr. Caldara said.

The need for aid is ever present, with more and more toys actually getting distributed within Westchester County despite popular misconceptions that the toys are shipped off to a distant area in need, Mr. Peck said.

Behind the numbers

“The experts say the economy is recovering and unemployment is declining. But the reality for many families tells a different story. Parents continue to struggle to put food on the table and pay the electric bill,” said Walter Hughes, a longtime member of the Goldens Bridge Fire Department. “Buying Christmas gifts for their children is a luxury they can’t afford. The toys provided through the Toys for Tots program are likely the only gifts thousands of children will receive on Christmas morning.”

Mr. Hughes encouraged all Goldens Bridge families to donate at least one toy during the drive so that every child in the Toys for Tots safety net will not be disappointed on Christmas morning.

On Saturday, Dec. 13, the local fire departments will be holding an official toy drop-off day. Toys may be dropped off that day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Goldens Bridge, South Salem, and Vista firehouses, and from 12 to 3 at the Katonah firehouse.

The Vista Fire Department will also be holding a series of festivities that day, including cookie decorating, face painting, hot cocoa, and a visit from Santa Claus and Sparky the Dog. Gifts or monetary donations, which are applied by Toys for Tots for specific large-ticket gifts, may be dropped off at any of the firehouses by Dec. 13.

“Donating a toy is a small and simple gesture — one that takes very little effort,” Mr. Hughes said. “But the rewards are enormous. The joy experienced by these children when they open their toy on Christmas morning is unimaginable. We are providing a message of hope that tells these children and their families that they are not alone or forgotten, and that people care.”

A list of recommended new and unwrapped gifts, including those for teenage females — the most “neglected” group in need — may be found below.

A woman crashed her car into DeCicco’s on Monday. (Reece Alvarez)

A 77-year-old woman crashed her van into DeCicco’s supermarket in Cross River on Monday afternoon.

Two people were in the van, but Lewisboro police said that no one was injured in the accident, which occurred at about 2:30 p.m.

The store remained open. Lewisboro’s building inspector said that the damage was cosmetic and that DeCicco’s will have professionals assess the damage.

A woman crashed her car into DeCicco’s on Monday. (Reece Alvarez)

A South Salem man was arrested for DWI after a car accident on Tuesday, Dec. 9.

State police arrested Michael Hall of South Salem for driving while intoxicated after he crashed his car on Tuesday, Dec. 9.

The 24-year-old John Jay High School graduate was involved in a one-car accident at 9:48 p.m. on Todd Road in Goldens Bridge. State police said that Mr. Hall fled the scene and was found near the woods on Jonas Lane.

After refusing to take a sobriety test, Mr. Hall was charged with one count of driving while intoxicated and one count of aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, according to state police.

The Lewisboro Volunteer Ambulance Corps took Mr. Hall to Westchester Medical Center following the accident.

This 42-foot demonstration fire engine, which includes a 100-foot aerial ladder, is the prospective truck the South Salem Fire District was seeking to purchase. (Reece Alvarez)

For what excitement uncontested races in Katonah, Vista and Goldens Bridge lacked, ballot measures in the South Salem Fire District’s heated vote made up for with a new commissioner and a nixed truck purchase.

Fueled by contention over the fire district’s proposed purchase of a new fire engine estimated at $750,000, two South Salem Fire District (SSFD) residents, Glenn DeFaber and Peter Ciacci Sr., ran for board chairman Steve Angelilli’s seat, which he left open after declining to run for re-election this year.

Mr. Ciacci won the election on Tuesday, Dec. 9, with 139 votes to Mr. DeFaber’s 113. A third candidate, Jared Harwayne-Gidansky, dropped out of the race in the weeks prior to the election, said Tom Herzog, chief election officer for the SSFD.

The purchase of the new fire engine was effectively vetoed by SSFD residents, who voted down a ballot measure that would have allowed the district to borrow up to $250,000 in a municipal lease financing agreement (installment purchase contract), in addition to the (up to) $600,000 the district intended to use from its equipment purchases capital reserve fund to purchase the truck.

The SSFD has an equipment purchase capital reserve fund totaling $808,059, and will likely not seek to purchase the truck using solely reserve funds, as it would nearly deplete the entire reserve, said Mr. Herzog, who is also president of the South Salem Fire Department.

“I think it is back to the drawing board,” he said.

Mr. Herzog emphasized that this is only his opinion and an assumption of what the district may do going forward, and that SSFD officials would know best.

SSFD commissioner Wayne Coluccini and district secretary Neal Blum both said that in regards to a fire engine purchase, the next step would need to be to discussed when the new Board of Commissioners holds its first meeting in January with the new addition of Peter Ciacci Sr.

It is unknown whether the department will seek alternatives to purchase the desired fire engine or if a smaller, less expensive apparatus will be considered.

Uncontested results

The results from Tuesday’s fire district elections in Lewisboro and Katonah came out mostly as expected, with uncontested races in Katonah and Vista resulting in Jeffrey Kellogg and Adam Ochs retaining their seats, respectively.

At the time The Ledger went to print, Goldens Bridge Fire District had not completed an official count of its ballots, though pending a surge of support for a write-in candidate, it is expected that Tom Beneventano and Joann Vasi will continue to serve as fire commisoners.

A 20-year-old Cross River man was arrested this week for allegedly having sexual phone conservations with minors.

Alex Accinelli

State police arrested Alexander Accinelli, a 2012 John Jay High School graduate, on Thursday, Dec. 18, on two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, a class A misdemeanor.

The arrest was the “result of incidents involving inappropriate phone contact he had with two local youths,” according to a state police press release.

“During the phone contact Accinelli engaged in conversation that was sexual in nature and also requested for one of the youths to secure illegal drugs for him,” according to police.

Mr. Accinelli was arraigned in Lewisboro Justice Court and released after posting $500 bail. He was scheduled to reappear before the Lewisboro Justice Court on Monday, Dec. 22, but his case was adjourned until Feb. 2, according to court clerks.

Lewisboro police

Lewisboro police arrested John Colleluori Jr. last week for driving while intoxicated in Cross River.

Police stopped the Yorktown Heights resident at 10:34 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 19, for speeding on Route 35 near Old Shop Road. Police found that Mr. Colleluori Jr. had a blood alcohol content of .15%.

He is scheduled to appear in Lewisboro Justice Court on Monday, Jan. 19.

Lewisboro and state police will be patrolling the roads for drunk drivers in greater numbers over the holidays. (Matt Spillane)

With the various festivities and imbibing of beverages surrounding holidays, the state and local police have increased patrols throughout the area to specifically target drunk driving.

“State troopers will be out in force to monitor our roadways and crack down on dangerous driving habits,” Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in a statement announcing the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign earlier this month. “This stepped-up enforcement — combined with a national campaign against drunk driving — will keep New Yorkers safe and help prevent needless tragedies from ever occurring.”

The campaign will last until Thursday, Jan. 1, and include sobriety checkpoints along with more troopers on major highways and patrols by unmarked state police vehicles.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), new data shows that drunk-driving deaths declined by 2.5% in 2013. Yet even with this decrease from the previous year, 10,076 people died in crashes involving a drunk driver in 2013 — one death every 52 minutes. However, December 2013 was the month with the lowest number of drunk-driving fatalities, with 733 lives lost.

On Christmas Day 2012, 26 people were killed by drunk drivers, according to Gov. Cuomo’s statement.

Melissa McMorris, public information officer for the state police, told The Ledger that as far as the Poughkeepsie state police territory, 15 arrests have been made so far.

Out of the state police satellite station in South Salem there have been two driving-while-impaired arrests so far this month. Both figures are nearly on par with data for last December, though the busiest time of the season has yet to pass, she said.

State police have already begun conducting checkpoints for impaired drivers, which on Dec. 19 resulted in the arrests of two men, one from Katonah and one from Ridgefield, Conn.

Local presence

Last December state police made two arrests in Lewisboro for impaired driving, and up until Dec. 19 that number remained the same for 2014, according to state police.

Lewisboro police will also be participating in the initiative, with additional patrols scheduled for New Year’s Eve, Chief Frank Secret told The Ledger.

This year has not seen any notable increase in accidents or impaired driving surrounding the holidays in Lewisboro, he said.

And possibly as reflected in the decreasing national drunk-driving statistics, Chief Secret said he believes drivers have gotten the message about drunk driving after years of national awareness campaigns.

“Believe it or not, I think for New Year’s Eve the word is finally getting out there. The night before Thanksgiving is actually the worst,” he said. “We are still trying to make New Year’s Eve a safe night for everybody on the road.”

While increased police patrols around the holidays is nothing new, this year revelers will have a new NHTSA smartphone application to help keep the roads safe by allowing users to call a taxi or a friend and by identifying their location so they can be picked up.

The app is available for Android devices on Google Play, and Apple devices on the iTunes store.

“This is the kind of time where I am very pleased that we have state police located in town,” said Town Supervisor Peter Parsons. “That, combined with our increase in patrols, should be a formidable force for keeping the roads safe.”

A South Salem man was arrested after a one-car accident in Pound Ridge sent he and a passenger to the hospital with injuries.

New York state police

State police arrested Nicholas Gengo-Lehr, 21, on Wednesday, Dec. 24, at 2:38 a.m. after his car went off the road and caught fire on Pound Ridge Road near Hoyt Road. The 2011 John Jay High School graduate was charged with one count of driving while intoxicated, a first offense, and one count of second-degree vehicular assault, a class E felony.

Police Chief Frank Secret inspects a car after it rolled off of Route 35 in South Salem on Tuesday, Dec. 30. (Matt Spillane)

A car rolled over after veering off the side of the road on Route 35 this morning, diverting westbound traffic before Boutonville Road in South Salem.

Police, firefighters, and the Lewisboro Volunteer Ambulance Corps (LVAC) responded to a one-car accident at about 7:10 a.m. Tuesday after witnesses saw an eastbound car plunge off the right side of the road and into the woods below. Police Chief Frank Secret said that the driver, a man under 21 years old, “most likely” fell asleep while driving after returning home from a concert that had kept the man awake all night.

Chief Secret said that the driver was not injured but was being taken to a hospital by LVAC as a precaution.

State police arrested a man in South Salem on Christmas Eve under Leandra’s Law for driving while intoxicated with a child 15 years or younger in the car.

New York state police

Bryce Davies, 40, of Ridgefield was arrested at 10:23 p.m. after he was in a one-car accident on West Lane in South Salem. He was charged with one count of operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol content of more than .08%, one count of driving while intoxicated, one count of aggravated DWI, and one count of aggravated DWI with a child, a class E felony.

Police said that no one was injured in the accident, which included Mr. Davies’s daughter, who is under 15.

Leandra’s Law was established in New York in 2009 in honor of Leandra Rosado, an 11-year-old girl who was killed while riding in a car with a friend’s mother who was intoxicated. One provision of the law states that no one shall operate a motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol while a child 15 or younger is in the vehicle.

The South Salem Fire District will hold its 2015 organizational meeting on Thursday, Jan. 8.

The South Salem Fire District will hold its 2015 organizational meeting on Thursday, Jan. 8, at the South Salem firehouse on Route 35. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m.

From left, Lewisboro Town Board members Dan Welsh, Peter DeLucia, Peter Parsons, and Frank Kelly. (Scott Mullin)

At their Jan. 5 organizational meeting, Town Board members approved a budget transfer of $34,000 from the police department part-time salary appropriation to the town general fund.

The funds are available due to the retirement of police Officer Gordon Moccio, who was formerly receiving disability compensation. Mr. Moccio has not been active with the department for about three years. The $34,000 will go into the town’s reserve, or surplus, fund.

The all volunteer Vista fire departments new emergency vehicle, ambulance 22, is a 2015 Ford F450 Super Duty Power Stroke diesel. (Courtesy of Vista Fire Department)

The Vista Fire Department recently announced its new emergency vehicle, ambulance 22,  a 2015 Ford F450 Super Duty Power Stroke diesel manufactured by Life Line Emergency Vehicles of Eastford, Connecticut.

“It is a state of the art ambulance, it is going to give our EMT’s [emergency medical technicians] the best opportunity to treat patients that call 911 within the Vista fire district,” said Jeff Peck, Vista fire chief.

The new ambulance will be put into service once all equipment from the previous emergency vehicle has been transferred and all department members are trained on the new apparatus, according to fire chief Jeff Peck.

The vehicle came at a cost of $226,414 and was paid for with funds from the department’s equipment reserve fund.

The Ambulance being replaced is a GMC that was first commissioned by the Vista Fire Department in 1987.

“We look forward to showcasing our new Ambulance during our VFD Open House & Recruitment Day event that will be held on Saturday March 7^th at the Vista Firehouse , 377 Smith Ridge Road in South Salem from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.,” Mr. Peck said in a press release.

The Vista Fire Department is an all volunteer emergency service that responds to about an average of 250 calls per year of which 60% are medical emergencies, Mr. Peck said.

A two car accident occurred near the intersection of Buck Run Street and Route 35 shortly before 11:35 a.m. today. Non-life threatening injuries were reported for the three individuals involved in the accident. (Reece Alvarez)

UPDATE: 12:05 p.m. – Traffic is backed up along Route 35 near the intersection of the Town Park and Buck Run Street. Police Chief Frank Secret reports that a two car accident occurred involving three people. All parties involved were injured and transported by emergency medical services with non-life-threatening injuries to Northern Westchester Hospital. Chief Secret expects the accident to be cleared shortly.

ORIGINAL: A motor vehicle accident has been reported with unknown injuries near the intersection of Route 35 and Buck Run Street.

Check back with LewisboroLedger.com for updates.

A high speed chase in Lewisboro ended in a manhunt in Ridgefield, Conn. on Saturday, Feb. 7. (Reece Alvarez)

Ridgefield, Conn. police arrested a Miami, Fla., man for drug and weapon charges after they found him buried in a snow bank on Mead Ridge Road around 9:18 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 7 after a high speed chase that began in Lewisboro.

Antony Vincent, 27, was charged with illegal possession of cocaine and marijuana with the intent to sell and carrying a dangerous weapon.

He was also charged with interfering with the duties of a police officer, failure to appear in court in the first degree, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Ridgefield, Lewisboro and Westchester County police searched for Mr. Vincent’s car in Ridgefield after Lewisboro police officers Andrew Llewellyn and David Alfano chased Mr. Vincent into Ridgefield, Conn. after he fled during an attempt to stop him for a speeding violation on Elmwood Road in Lewisboro.

LPD notified Ridgefield dispatch that Mr. Vincent was wanted on a felony warrant and warned that he could be armed. Mr. Vincent was known to LPD from a previous incident in 2014 where he was observed fleeing from a vehicle as a passenger into a home during a traffic stop — as well as being a John Jay High School graduate.

Lewisboro police found the car parked in the driveway of a Mead Ridge Road home and notified Ridgefield police, who set up a perimeter and used K-9 officer Loki to search the area.

“K-9 Loki was able to locate Mr. Vincent who had buried himself in the snow,” Ridgefield Police Capt. Jeff Kreitz said.

Police said he was a quarter mile from his car.

“In close proximity to Mr. Vincent, K-9 Loki located a bag containing approximately 3.5 grams of Cocaine, 25 grams of Marijuana, drug packaging material and a switchblade knife,” Capt. Jeff Kreitz said.

“It should be noted that the suspect had no connection to the Mead Ridge Road residence,” he added.

Ridgefield police said that the failure to appear in the first degree charge stemmed from a 2006 criminal mischief arrest in Ridgefield, Conn., for which Mr. Vincent never appeared in court.

Mr. Vincent’s bond was set at $7,500, which he posted, and was released to the custody of the Connecticut State Police who also had an active warrant for him.

Mr. Vincent is scheduled to appear in Danbury Superior Court on Feb. 20.

—Additional reporting by Steve Coulter, Ridgefield Press

On Sunday evening, Feb. 8, a 55-year-old Grandview Road man is reported to have “jabbed” a 49-year-old South Salem resident with a fork, puncturing her skin, and used his foot to choke her, according to State Police Public Information Officer, Melissa McMorris.

The relationship between the two individuals could not be disclosed in order to protect the identity of the victim, Ms. McMorris said, and there was no comment on what caused the incident.

The woman received treatment for her injuries at Northern Westchester Hospital, which were not life-threatening.

The man was charged with third-degree assault and criminal obstruction of breathing, both Class A misdemeanors. He was arraigned in Lewisboro Town Court, and released on his own recognizance, Ms. McMorris said.