Mystery of the missing trees: Tiverton seeks harborside tree cutting culprit

By Kristen Ray
Posted 1/16/20

 The mystery remains over why 25 trees were inexplicably cut down along an embankment off Main Road overlooking Tiverton Basin earlier this month, around January 2 and 3. 

The action …

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Mystery of the missing trees: Tiverton seeks harborside tree cutting culprit

Posted

The mystery remains over why 25 trees were inexplicably cut down along an embankment off Main Road overlooking Tiverton Basin earlier this month, around January 2 and 3. 

The action expands the view out over the harbor but leaves a row of unsightly stumps of varying heights.

Despite an “exhaustive” investigation by Tiverton police in the weeks since, Chief of Police Patrick Jones told councilors Monday night – from reaching out to different tree companies, neighbors, even the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council – they are still without answers as to how and why this incident occurred.  

“It’s quite the saga,” said Town Administrator Jan Reitsma. 

Those responsible, Chief Jones said, would face charges; any persons with information are encouraged to either reach out to him or through the anonymous tip line on their website. 

“In this town – where everybody knows what everybody else is doing – it is shocking to me that (nobody) knows what happened out there,” said vice president Denise deMedeiros. 

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