From the Desk of Chief Ray Schultz,

This week has been National Public Safety Telecommunicator Week. Each year during the second week of April we celebrate and honor our Police and Fire Dispatchers with National Public Safety Telecommunicator Week. Here in the villages, we are fortunate to have some of the best dispatchers in the country. Our team of dispatch professionals are always quick to answer emergency police calls and to initiate the necessary emergency protocols. Whether it is police, fire, EMS, or a combination of, part or all first responders, our staff is ready to figure out what is occurring and what resources are needed to be dispatched to the event/emergency.

Public safety dispatchers must often calm down the calling party and determine where the emergency is occurring, what is occurring and then dispatch the appropriate resources. The job of an emergency responder is extremely demanding and complicated.  Besides answering the emergency and non-emergency calls, they are responsible for monitoring the extensive radio traffic of emergency responders. Radio traffic seems to never stop, as officers are involved in not just responding to 911 and non-emergency calls, but a lot of self-initiated activities are also handled by our dispatchers, they gather information as traffic stop occurs, they check the status of drivers, passengers and vehicle registrations and insurance. While answering calls, and speaking on the radios, they are also accessing multiple computer databases, entering information, and monitoring our ALPR cameras. They are also responsible for confirming local arrest warrants for inquiring agencies (warrants must be confirmed within 10 minutes of notification 24/7).

Besides emergency calls, our emergency dispatch operators answer dozens of miscellaneous phone calls per day and handle all walk-in traffic in the station lobby.  In 2022, MVPD emergency dispatchers answered 4,120 - 911 calls, 28,936 calls that came in on our non-emergency phone lines and transmitted information via radio 121,903 times. Besides those duties, they update our V-LINC registration pages, alarm permits, house watches and numerous other databases on an on-going basis. Great work by a great team of professionals! Thank you - Team MVPD. Check out the attached Proclamation issued to the MVPD dispatch team by the Village of Bunker Hill. And thank’s to the Memorial Villages Police Foundation who treated the dispatch team to a lunch of their choice.

This week staff from MVPD, Hedwig PD, City Hall, the MVPD Police Commission and Village Fire Fighters were treated to a special lunch and dinner hosted by area residents who make up our Muslim community. In celebration of Ramadan, staff enjoyed a traditional meal that was catered at the MVPD station. Residents stopped by and visited officers, detectives, staff, and village officials. During the evening meal, community members joined the police commission for their monthly meeting where they had an opportunity to see their village officials conducting the business of the Memorial Villages Police Department. As always, the MVPD is proud to be a part of our unique and diverse community and for having the chance to learn more about the cultures and religion of our residents and their families.

The MVPD is once again participating in the Texas LE Special Olympics Torch Run.  MVPD Officer Ortega will be leading the MVPD team as we help raise funds for Special Olympics Learn more at https://youtube.com/specialolympicstexas or donate on behalf of the MVPD team at https://givebutter.com/MemorialPD

On Thursday MVPD Detective Chris Rodriquez was honored by the Memorial Exchange Club as the MVPD officer of the year. Detective Rodriquez was recognized as a result of his thorough investigative work and effective case follow-up. Detective Rodriguez continues to lead the charge in the Fight Against Crime here in the villages. Congratulations.

I have been asked to share with you that Memorial High School students are planning a Crawfish Boil and Silent Auction with all proceeds benefiting Mustangs for Mental Health, a 501(c)(3) non-profit. Unfortunately, there are students who struggle with mental health issues/concerns and for some the cost of therapy is out of reach. M4MH works with school wellness counselors to provide access to off campus therapy for students in need of assistance. They pay for up to 12 sessions of therapy per student, on an anonymous basis. Their Crawfish Boil is next Thursday, April 20 from 6-8PM in the Courtyard at MHS.

Chef Anthony Lane is providing fresh, Louisiana crawfish. The tickets are $25 for “all you can eat crawfish”. They also have $50 tickets available which includes all you can eat crawfish + a raffle ticket. Tickets can be purchased on their website! (www.mustangsformentalhealth.com) Please purchase by April 18th so Anthony can order enough crawfish! 

If you haven’t had an opportunity to see the silent auction items and raffle prizes, please check out their account on Instagram @mustangsformentalhealth. 

Raffle tickets have four prizes: 

·        Astros tickets in the Insperity Club with in-stadium parking

·        Luminox Navy SEAL, 45 mm, military dive watch from Phil Abrams and      Suisse Luxury Time

·        Two suite tickets to the Drake concert in June

·        Weekend at a Galveston beach house from the Coolidge family

The Mustangs for Mental Health Program is a student initiated and lead organization. Let’s all please support these leaders of tomorrow - our MHS students. Learn more on the attached flyer.

Bunker Hill Elementary will be hosting, Spring Fling 2023 this evening from 4:30pm – 7:30pm at the school.  There will be games and food available, along with a plethora of jump houses. Wristbands and individual tickets are available for sale at the event.  MVPD officers will be in attendance.

Remember to stay safe, stay alert. Report any suspicious behaviors or activities that you see in the villages to us at 713-365-3700. We will investigate. 

Have a great weekend. Chief Ray Schultz rschultz@mvpdtx.org  

Weekly Crime Report

Piney Point

4/7/23 at 1345 Hours. 500 Block of Dana Lane. Identity Theft. The victim reported that he received notice from his bank of an unidentified subject attempting to open a bank account using the victim’s personal information, but they had denied the account. The victim then checked his credit report and located 2 unauthorized bank accounts that had been opened at other banks using his personal information. The victim had contacted those banks and notified them of the fraudulent activity and had his credit frozen.  Information was collected and provided to detectives for their follow-up investigation.

4/7/23 at 1745 Hours. 11300 Block of Greenbay. Theft.  The victim reported that upon reviewing his video doorbell, he observed a delivery driver drop packages of at his home and then go into his bushes where he retrieved a kitten and then taking the kitten with him as he left the property in the delivery truck.  Officers utilized the ALPR system to identify the truck in question. Information about the delivery driver and vehicle was collected and provided to detectives for their follow-up investigation.

4/7/23 at 1930 Hours. 500 Block of Dana Lane. Fraud.  The victim stated that she had purchased concert tickets from a person on Facebook marketplace but never received the tickets. The seller has since blocked the victim and will not return phone calls. Information about the transaction was collected and provided to detectives for their follow-up investigation. Note: The transaction was made via Venmo and Venmo stated that a police report was needed before they would initiate an investigation.

4/12/23 at 1015 Hours. 300 Piney Point. Traffic Arrest. Officers initiated a traffic stop on a vehicle after observing it to be driving in the area with an expired registration. Upon contacting the driver, officers learned that the driver did not have a license, insurance, or a current vehicle registration. The driver was also found to have multiple outstanding warrants for his arrest. The 41-year-old male was placed under arrest and the vehicle released to family members.

4/13/23 at 1500 Hours. 11100 Block of Wickway. Fraud. The victim reported that he was notified of possible fraudulent activity occurring on his debit card. The victim investigated further and learned that his bank had sent a new debit card that he had never received. It appears the debit card had been stolen and was being used in both Texas and NY. The card was cancelled by the victim.  Information was collected and provided to detectives for their follow-up investigation.

Hunters Creek

4/8/23 at 1900 Hours. 400 Block of Voss. Eluding a Police Officer.  Officers attempted to pull over a vehicle after observing it to be speeding on Voss.  The vehicle failed to stop for officers and continued traveling south on Voss before getting caught up in traffic near Woodway. Officers were able to approach the vehicle and ordered the driver to place the vehicle into park. The driver was taken into custody and booked into the Harris County Jail. The vehicle was towed.

Bunker Hill

No significant events