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PUBLISHED ON EDITION NO. »
334L
  |  4/8/2010
Lantigua accused of abuse of power
By Dalia Díaz
daliadiaz@rumbonews.com

A local Barber has accused Mayor William Lantigua of abuse of power as a result of an incident that occurred in front of his shop on Saturday, March 20.

According to Alvaro Sanchez, a group of men were playing domino outside of his NY Unisex Barber Shop on 38 Hampshire St. when Mayor Lantigua walked by and saluted everyone. Someone then asked who that man was and upon of learning that he was the city’s mayor, referred to him as “a piece of s…”

Mayor Lantigua heard the comment and turned back to find out who said it and one of them took responsibility for it. An argument ensued and Lantigua called police but before they could arrive, the offender ran inside the building and disappeared.

Officers Carmen Purpora, Angel Lopez and Ariel Montas responded to the call; they spoke to the men outside including Mr. Sanchez and proceeded to search inside the establishment, looking for the man who ran inside. They concluded that he may have exited the building through a back door and could not be found.

Meanwhile, Mr. Sanchez called his aunt Wendy Luzon, because she knows the mayor and perhaps could talk to him. Ms. Luzon said that when she arrived, Lantigua was irate and yelled at her not to get out of her car.

Then, one of the officers asked the mayor what else he wanted them to do and according to Ms. Luzon, Lantigua ordered, “Shut the f… place down!”

The business was not closed because Mayor Lantigua decided against it after he said it, but everyone who was there waiting for service left and there was no business for the rest of the day.

“People went by and saw police officers here. That’s all I needed to ruin my business; they probably thought I was doing something illegal,” said Alvaro Sanchez.

Mayor Lantigua recalled the story in the exact way Mr. Sanchez related it and his only reasoning for turning around to ask who had offended him was that, “I felt disrespected but I was more concerned about the lack of respect towards the office I hold,” he said. “I considered for a moment if I should go back or keep on walking but I was afraid that it could escalate,” he added.

Now, Mr. Sanchez is fearful of retaliation for something in which he was not involved in the first place.

A case of intimidation
His fear has logic because on Tuesday, March 23, his sister, Elenora Balbuena was visited by a Lawrence Police officer at her place of work and accused of robbery. Ms. Balbuena works at the Burger King located on Haverhill St., Methuen, when Officer Barry Desjardins accused her of stealing $2,000 from a woman in a Liberty Taxi. He patted her down and searched in the trash cans around looking for the stash.

Officer Desjardins left and she has not heard from anyone since and no charges have been filed against her to date.

But when Ms. Balbuena went home, she told the story to her aunt Wendy Luzon and she recommended going to the Lawrence Police to find out if they knew anything regarding the robbery or why she was searched. To their surprise, they knew nothing of those incidents in Lawrence.

Then, they went to Methuen Police. “We immediately found out that no police officer has jurisdiction entering another city or town without first calling or notifying the police department of the city they are planning to enter,” said Ms. Luzón.

The Methuen Police Department issued a report stating Ms. Balbuena’s appearance before them and their own findings upon calling Lawrence Police to confirm the identity of Officer Barry Desjardins.

The entire incident and search was caught by the surveillance camera at Burger King. Armed with a copy of that tape and the Methuen Police Department’s report, she has contacted an attorney because her civil rights have been violated, besides the embarrassment before her employer.

This is not the end
As Mr. Sanchez suspected, he believes that the harassment has begun. Last week, City Hall inspectors went to check on the certificate for the plasma television he has on the wall for the benefit of his customers. Upon confirming that the certificate was posted under the television set, they left the barber shop.

The report issued by the Lawrence Police Department stated that Mayor Lantigua “was in fear for his safety. He stated that this individual’s actions appeared hostile and unpredictable,” the report reads.

Detective Carmen Purpora further wrote: “Upon exiting the business, I observed several barber chairs inside Mr. Sanchez’s barber shop. Mr. Sanchez stated that he had several barbers working at this business. As pursuant to Mass General Laws Ch. 112 s87, I inquired whether or not he had proper licensing for the several barbers that were working in his business. Mr. Sanchez displayed only a permit for the business to operate and was unable to provide any Master or apprentice licenses. I informed Mr. Sanchez that the police would follow-up in assuring that he had the proper licenses to operate the business.”

The matter was closed since they were unable to find the suspect pending further information.

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