Break-In at Anawan School

A recent break-in at the Anawan School has prompted the Board of Selectmen to order the first floor windows and entrances to be boarded up. On Thursday, Rehoboth Police arrested Ryan Bouffard, from Johnston, Rhode Island. Bouffard was charged with vandalism and breaking and entering. Bouffard had posted several photos of the building’s interior on his Facebook page, which were shared on the Rehoboth Talk page on January 23. A GoFundMe account has been launched to raise money for Bouffard’s legal expenses.

“Someone illegally entered the building, they went through a fence and smashed a window to get in,” Selectmen Chairman Skip Vadnais said Wednesday. Vadnais was baffled as to the reason why anyone would need to enter the building to take photographs. “We went through (the building) with the (Community Preservation Committee) and we allowed them to take all the pictures they wanted,” Vadnais noted. “We have these buildings checked every single day. That window wasn’t broken long.”

After an inspection of the building last June, William McDonough, the town’s Building Commissioner, said the facility at 53 Bay State Road was “unsafe” and ordered it to be demolished within 90 days. McDonough reported 90 percent of the ceilings had collapsed and all of the hardwood floors were “completely buckled and rotted.” The building was also impacted by extensive water damage. McDonough spotted “multiple holes on the roof” and multiple broken windows.

Selectmen considered the building a danger to the public and declared the property off-limits. No Trespassing signs and protective fencing were put up to deter people from going inside.  “Originally we didn’t know the structural integrity of the walls, that’s why we put the fence (around the building) in case it caved in,” Vadnais said. “It’s been determined that the walls are not going to cave in. We never dreamt that this was like inner city stuff where somebody would smash the windows to get in. We never dreamt that would happen.” Vadnais explained the demolition is on hold right now because the CPC and the Housing Authority may want to do something with the building.