A 58-year-old homeless man was arrested after causing a disturbance at the Harvard General Store last week. Curtis M. Faith, whose last known residence was a Boston homeless shelter, was charged with disorderly conduct, malicious destruction of property, and falsely setting off a fire alarm on Wednesday, Feb. 16.
According to an employee at the General Store, Faith entered the store around 3 p.m. and started rearranging items on the shelves. When the employee asked him to stop, Faith began to smash things, including some merchandise and the lid of a large glass jar on the counter. One of the two employees on duty called 911. Faith then fled on foot, pulling the fire alarm on his way out of the building.
The whole incident was captured on the store’s security camera. Police later said the video showed Faith had been very aggressive and threatening to the employees.
Four Harvard police officers, including Chief James Babu, responded to the 911 call. Detective Daniele Fortunato and Officers Charles Genetti and Aaron Cavanaugh began a search for Faith. Two state police officers from the K-9 unit came to assist if the search expanded, but their help proved unnecessary: The Harvard officers located Faith at the ball field on Pond Road.
Police took Faith to Emerson Hospital under a Massachusetts law known as Section 12, which allows the emergency hospitalization of someone who poses a risk of serious harm because of mental illness. The video from the General Store’s camera convinced the emergency-room staff that Faith posed a serious threat, Fortunato said. Faith was still at the hospital as of the time this issue went to press.
Fire Chief Rick Sicard also came to the General Store to reset the fire alarm Faith had activated.
Earlier that day, around 6 a.m., Faith had caused a disruption at a hotel in Devens and at the regional dispatch center there. He was told to leave both places. He may have taken a train from Boston to Devens, but it is not clear how he traveled to Harvard after that.
Faith graduated from the Bromfield School in 1982 and attended Worcester Polytechnic Institute. According to online information, he started a software company that failed shortly after its initial public offering in 1996. He later created a commodities trading business that closed in 2007 amid investigations from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. According to police, there are more than a dozen open cases against him in various jurisdictions.
