LOWELL, MASS. (WHDH) - Lowell police officers came together to provide a high school student with a new scooter after his old ride was stolen.
Faheem Kasawli, a sophomore at Lowell High School, was devastated when he recently became the target of a crime that happened in front of the school.
“I felt really bad. It was really bad because I didn’t know what to do. I had no options,” Kasawli said.
According to Lowell police, the thief walked onto school property, removed the lock from Kasawli’s scooter, and took off.
“I went to the officers, and they were going to check on the footage, because there’s a camera, and they said they would do whatever it takes to help me out,” Kasawli said.
Lowell school resource officer Timothy Sullivan immediately recognized the thief on surveillance video. Officers tracked down and arrested that man, but the scooter was long gone.
“We knew Faheem used his scooter as a main transportation form, to get him from school to home, and also to soccer practice. So, we knew he had a long travel with all that,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan discussed the theft with a fellow school resource officer, who also acts as secretary of the Lowell Patrol Officer’s Union. That officer reached out to the union’s president and got approval for union funds to help replace the stolen scooter.
“I said, ‘Hey, this happened at the high school. Kid’s a good kid, you know, it’s unfortunate that it happened, but let’s take something that was bad and make it good,'” said Officer Jose Santiago.
Sullivan was able to find the same model of scooter online to help Kasawli get back on the road.
“When he saw the scooter, he had a big smile on his face. It made his day,” Sullivan said.
This isn’t the first time the Lowell Police Department has stepped up to help a student. Officers also replaced a student’s electric bicycle after it was stolen last year.
“We’re a part of their community. If we can do something to help, we’re going to help,” Santiago said. “You know, whatever it takes, we’ll get it done.”
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