From the Desk of Sheriff Abbott – 5/01/2026
- Uniform Response handled a Break-in call in Geneva Township. Upon investigation, it wasn’t a break-in, but a civil complaint. One of the individuals involved had a bench warrant for their arrest, so they were lodged on it.
- Uniform Response handled a Larceny from outside a Vacant Residence in Hamilton Township. Anyone with any information is asked to call our office.
- Uniform Response handled a call in the Village of Mattawan in which Two Children in Diapers were in the Roadway. Deputies searched the area and was able to figure out where they belonged. The children were returned to the parents, and the case is being reviewed by CPS.
- Uniform Response handed an Assault call in Geneva Township. The assault turned out to be unfounded, however, one of the individuals on scene had a bench warrant for their arrest. The individual was arrested on the warrant. Meth was found during the arrest, and the charges are now being submitted on that as well.
- Our Office participated in the DEA Takeback Event this past weekend. Just a reminder, we have numerous red med boxes located throughout the county so citizens can dispose of their medications every week. The locations are posted on our website and are all over the county.
- Friday, May 8th at 7:00pm is our annual Detroit Legends vs Van Buren County FOP All-Stars Basketball Game. It’s being held once again at the Paw Paw Middle School Gym. If you’ve never been, you are missing out on a good time. The Legends take pictures and do autographs at halftime and consistently engage with the crowd, especially the kids. For tickets, call 1-800-445-2143 or go to fop136.publicsafetytypsa.com. Hope to see you there.
- Uniform Response handled an Assault Call in Decatur Township. The investigation found that a juvenile assaulted his mother and it’s an ongoing issue with this happening. The juvenile was taken and lodged at a juvenile detention center for domestic assault.
- Uniform Response handled a Trespassing call in Antwerp Township. A homeless individual was sleeping in a van on private property, so they were advised to leave and not come back as the property owners did not want them there. The individual left and advised they wouldn’t return.
- There’s a new Scam going around that is going to cell phones or emails about You Being a Perfect Candidate for a Job. They want you to click on a link so an expert resume builder can help you update it. As always, once you do, they scam you with the information they just obtained. This scam is coming from a Gmail address.
- We have received calls throughout the year of people stopping at apple orchards, pear orchards, etc to pick fruit without getting permission from the farmer. This past week, different individuals have been stealing asparagus from different fields doing just that. Keep in mind, that is a larceny and illegal trespassing if the farmer chooses to press charges if you get caught. If you are one of these individuals that doesn’t think it’s a big deal taking from a farmer’s livelihood as it’s a big field or orchard and get caught, you’ll have no one to blame but yourself when you get charged and have a criminal record moving forward. We received information this past week about individual’s doing just that at an asparagus field and the suspect’s fleeing every time before the farmer could get to them.
