Patrick Allen ... patrickwilliamallen@comcast.

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Yellow Cab Vandalism a Ruse?

Yellow Cab Vandalism a Ruse? by Patrick Allen

On Sunday morning, June 23, 2013, a police report (Case # 2013-039458) was filed with the Frederick City police department citing vandalism at the Yellow Cab Company. The vandalism included paper flyers pasted across the side of a building at Yellow Cab as well as posted on one or more entrance doors to the building. According to Blaine Young's statements in the newspaper and on radio, he drove to the Yellow Cab company facility Sunday morning, on his way to church and noticed the flyers stuck to the side of his building. According to the Frederick Police Department (FPD) Case Summary Report the vandalism was found the previous evening at 11:00 pm, but not reported until 9:38 am on Sunday. FPD Officer Brian Payne conducted the investigation by looking at the flyers stuck to the side of the building, contacted two residents that live across the street from the cab company who said they did not witness anything, then closed the case at 4:29 pm that same day ... citing in his official report, "Due to the fact that I have no witnesses to this incident I am suspending it". That's it? Case closed?

It's not what's "in" the report that causes concern ... it's what's "not" in the official police report. The report does not contain any notations regarding the following: 1. 2. Officer Payne did not ask if there overhead lighting along that area of the building. Officer Payne did not ask if there was one or more security cameras with a field of view to that section of the building and the entrance door where a flyer was also posted. Officer Payne did not ask if the security camera equipment was operational and running prior to 11:00 pm on Saturday, June 22nd. Officer Payne did not ask to review the security camera footage from the previous night when the vandalism was found (according to the police report). Having talked with two residents across the street from Yellow Cab, Officer Payne did not question Blaine Young regarding his possible / probable participation in the vandalism.

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During a July 15, 2013 telephone call to FPD, requesting an update on the Yellow Cab vandalism investigation, the Duty Desk person was asked if Officer Payne investigated the high probability that the vandalism was an "inside" job performed by one or more Yellow Cab owners / employees ... reminding her that first year criminal justice students are taught to look inward and outward during an investigation. She could not answer that question. Given that the vandalism occurred two days prior to the emotionally charged June 25th Montevue / Citizens public hearing and BOCC vote to sell the properties, it was proffered to FPD that Blaine Young, himself, was behind the vandalism in order to place himself in the "victim" role prior to the Tuesday night public hearing. Mitigating factors for that assertion, as conveyed to the FPD Duty Officer, are: 1. The flyers were "neatly" pasted across the side of the building ... not consistent with get-in-and-get-out vandalism or by someone who has no knowledge of security camera locations and fields of view. A flyer was posted on one of the entrance doors to the building ... again, not consistent with vandalism by someone who has no knowledge of security camera locations and fields of view.

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It appears this case was opened and closed so fast that the most basic and fundamental investigative techniques were not used to exclude Blaine Young as a person of interest, or to determine if Mr. Young had filed a false police report.

FPD Police Report : Page 1

FPD Police Report : Page 2

FPD Police Report : Page 3

FPD Police Report : Page 4

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