The 657 Watcher

Approximately 3 days after purchasing a beautiful home, the new owners received an eerie letter

Dearest new neighbor at 657 Boulevard, Allow me to welcome you to the neighborhood.

It went on to say...

657 Boulevard has been the subject of my family for decades now and as it approaches its 110th birthday, I have been put in charge of watching and waiting for its second coming. My grandfather watched the house in the 1920s and my father watched in the 1960s. It is now my time. Do you know the history of the house? Do you know what lies within the walls of 657 Boulevard? Why are you here? I will find out.

and

Do you need to fill the house with the young blood I requested? Better for me. Was your old house too small for the growing family? Or was it greed to bring me your children? Once I know their names I will call to them and draw them too [sic] me.

Not only did they receive the letter, but it went on to describe specific details about the family as well as their habitual daily patterns they were doing. The family also received continual letters ongoing over a long period of time. They were being stalked.

The Watcher

After reading the whole article, I am having a hard time believing the town police could not find out who was behind it. This sick game/fiasco went on for more than 2 years. It appears to me that the family was gang stalked by a group in the town and if it did not start out that way it turned into that. Otherwise it would imply that one very sick individual has been successful in stalking a town with ongoing repercussions that are endless. I just can't wrap my head around how this went on for so long. It turned the whole town topsy turvey and the town's behavior toward this family imo is unforgivable and fueled the serial perpetrator(s) agenda.

How does something like this go unsolved ? They even had profilers involved in the investigation. Did the police department not take it serious enough ?

leolady

a reply to: leolady

Creepy for sure.

Maybe it went on because the law didn't put much effort in cause there was no real threat.

Don't get me wrong if I were the owners I would feel threatened.

On the other hand it is not illegal to be creepy or send letters.
Right?

a reply to: TinySickTears

I'm not sure, but it sounds like it could be construed as harassment even if it's not threatening.

If it was me, I'd turn off mail to the house and get a PO Box.

originally posted by: watchitburn
a reply to: TinySickTears

I'm not sure, but it sounds like it could be construed as harassment even if it's not threatening.

If it was me, I'd turn off mail to the house and get a PO Box.

Getting a p.o. box wouldn't stop someone from watching you though. You would just be oblivious to it.

Creepy for sure.

I would have lost my mind trying to find out who it was.

Chances are it was someone close right?
Takes time and effort to put that time in.

Would be easy if they lived across the street

a reply to: TinySickTears

It was creepy and it was continual so I believe it was harassment and stalking. I believe it sickens me even more that the town turned against the victims. At a time when the world preaches to stop bully type behavior, but the town appeared to condone it, and they even conspired that the victims were the originators of the letters.

At a time when the community should of banded together to stop and prevent this kind of threatening disturbance, they didn't. Instead sides were taken and a divide happened.

As a result of the police being unable to resolve the matter successfully, the victims continued to be harassed not only by the letter sender, but now by the town folk who didn't believe them and it appears they eventually took matters into their own hands.

leolady

a reply to: TinySickTears

Chances are it was someone close right?

I think I would of been tearing down those walls. After reading the entire article, which addressed some of what the stalker was saying, it sounded to me like the stalker might of had surveillance equipment in the house... maybe in the walls.

leolady

a reply to: leolady

I would've had the place burned to the ground so I could rebuild or sell the empty lot, just to make the Watcher suffer.

Or rent the existing home to some college age kids for cheap and let them wreck the place, or rent it to an organization that runs halfway homes for addicts, parolees, or sex offenders (is there such a thing as a sex offender halfway house? i guess that could fall under "parolees"?) Everyone is allowed to bring as much pets as they want, and make the entire "watcher" saga into a YouTube channel. Watch the Watcher slowly slip away into madness...

Edit- and yes, I would be searching the woodwork lol. God knows what it is but it almost seemed like the Watcher wanted something to be found... For a minute I thought he's just trying to get the guy to tear the walls apart and waste more money fixing them, but, I don't know.

The talk of greed was odd. He didn't know anything about the family at first but he assumes that it was greed that led them to purchase the house. Strange. Of course we don't know how much was truth. I thought the talk of telescopes and binoculars was a red herring to throw them off from possible electronic surveillance up close, maybe in the home. Looking at Google Maps Streetview, theres a ton of trees in that neighborhood! If they were more than 2 houses away in any direction, it seems like there would have to be a tree or a house blocking your view... I guess it could be someone able to get high up and look down? Or they just had a lucky line of sight.

A commenter below the article has a seemingly decent case for it being the 90 year old woman neighbor, rather than any of her 60 year old kids, but it seems like she wouldve probably needed help. I dunno.

Thanks for sharing!

According to the discussion here

It was an elaborate hoax to try and get the city to allow the owners to subdivide the lot.

a reply to: dug88

"I live about three blocks away. The zoning board denied the owners' bid to subdivide the property, and now the house is back on the market. "Suddenly" no more communication from The Watcher. What a coincidence, huh?

It's such a crock. How did the buyers know that the sellers received a letter from "The Watcher" right before the closing, a letter the sellers threw right in the trash?

I have friends that are cops in Westfield and they've told me that there isn't an investigation going on, and there never was."

Small world isn't it ? If you take this persons opinion as the truth that is.

a reply to: threeeyesopen

From what I read in the article, the subdivide request came after all the harassing letters started. The owners were now stuck with a new home and a financial loss situation and trying to come out in the best way financially possible after realizing they could not live in a home where they were afraid.

The town folk chimed in to deny the subdivide, it is all explained in the article as such. I did read this too.

The article also verifies the police department and profilers could never figure out who was writing and sending the stalking letters. That does not imply that the owners are guilty and did anything either. It means the police department did not solve the case. No one knows the full truth to the situation yet.


leolady

a reply to: dug88

The hoax theory is discussed in the article i linked... that it was a hoax done by the owners to get out of the house. It is not proven though, according to any articles I could find in regards to this situation, the police never solved or proved what actually happened.

The article I linked was very long with a-lot of information. I read through all of it. Some pretty crazy stuff going on for sure.

leolady

a reply to: 3n19m470

The talk of greed was odd. He didn't know anything about the family at first but he assumes that it was greed that led them to purchase the house.

In the article, they spoke about this and said that they had a profiler on the case who pointed this out. The profiler that the family hired insinuated that the individual who wrote the letters had an anger issue with wealthy folks.

leolady

In the following video, there's said evidence shared in the local paper that DNA on the letters was female. Also, that the letter itself indicated handwriting patterns of an older woman.


Stalker Known As The Watcher’s Identity Might Have Been Revealed

I've just started looking into myself, was wondering if there's any indication of a town hall record investigation on the property. That might lead to a relative of family, or other that has issues with the home being sold or other.

a reply to: leolady

It was the Police Chief . ............Hmm....

a reply to: Zanti Misfit

Could be. I've been in a creepy town like that interested in a home. Turns out even the police, real estate, etc. are afraid of how the people act when it comes to homes and land being sold to outsiders.

a reply to: dreamingawake

dreamingawake: Also, that the letter itself indicated handwriting patterns of an older woman.

I did read about the dna testing and the writing patterns. More details of the salutations used in the letter which helped in making the profile of whom the letter sender might be...

The envelope was addressed to “M/M Braddus,” the salutations included the day’s weather — “Warm and humid,” “Sunny and cool for a summer day” —

dreamingawake: I've just started looking into myself, was wondering if there's any indication of a town hall record investigation on the property.

Good Idea. There will be a current record for the meeting where they were trying to get the town to approve the subdivide but it was a no go. It would be interesting to know if they have any other records. Don't you have to goto the local library or courthouse to obtain these kinds of records ?

leolady