A man was arrested after yelling obscenities, making vulgar remarks and interfering with operations at a Rhode Island polling place during Tuesday’s election.

Coventry police said they responded to Maple Root Baptist Church, a registered polling location in Coventry, around 10:15 a.m. Tuesday for a report of a man causing a disturbance involving voters and political supporters.

Responding officers spoke with election officials and witnesses, as well as the man who had caused the disturbance, about what had occurred. Their investigation determined that the man had been confrontational with voters, political supporters and election staff, yelling obscenities and vulgar remarks and interfering with polling operations.

The man allegedly continued this behavior even after police had arrived at the scene.

The man, identified as 33-year-old Timothy Masse, of Coventry, was arrested for disorderly conduct, police said. He was taken to the Coventry Police Department, where he was processed and awaits arraignment before a bail commissioner.

Two men are facing federal charges for their alleged roles in “grandparent scams” in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, according to the Warwick Police Department.

Jason Rhodes, 34, of Flushing, New York, and Robert Munoz, 29, of Miami, Florida, have been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. 

The two were released on unsecured bond and GPS monitoring after appearing before a federal magistrate judge on Friday.

Rhodes and Munoz were allegedly operating as couriers and collected approximately $230,000 from unsuspecting seniors.

ELDERLY RHODE ISLAND RESIDENTS CHEATED OUT OF OVER $300K COMBINED IN SCAM, 3 SENT TO PRISON

They were arrested back in March when a victim reported to Warwick police that they had been scammed, which police were able to identify as an ongoing scheme.

The scams often target grandparents or the elderly via phone calls claiming that a loved one needs bail money because they have been arrested. The courier will then attempt to collect the money posing as another family member or attorney. 

Warwick police night detectives worked with Special Operations Group, Financial Crimes and Criminal Investigations units, as well as the victims, to set up an operation to capture Rhodes as he was arriving at a victim’s residence to collect the victim’s money. It was then that they recognized him from a similar scam that had been reported in Rhode Island.

Detectives were able to take Rhodes into custody following a short foot pursuit. Munoz, who was the alleged getaway driver, was also arrested.

ELDERLY AMERICANS SCAMMED OUT OF MILLIONS BY FOREIGNERS POSING AS GRANDCHILDREN IN TROUBLE

A warrant was then issued for a hotel room in Munoz’s name where the detectives seized evidence connecting the two to other “grandparent scams,” $60,000 in cash and other items.

The Warwick Police Department urges anyone who believes they may be a victim of this scam or a similar one to contact their respective police department.

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If you or someone you know is aged 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is available by calling the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833 FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311).

SOUTH KINGSTOWN — This first meeting between the University of Rhode Island women and Stonehill went about how you might expect. 

The Rams played in the Atlantic 10 tournament championship game last season. The Skyhawks won just four times and are entering only their third year in Division I. 

The result on this Monday night at the Ryan Center was a predictable one. URI muscled its way to a 68-45 victory, with a reworked rotation smothering the visitors at the defensive end and on the glass. 

“Pretty pleased with how we executed,” URI coach Tammi Reiss said. “Really asked the team to come out and just play hard. Let the game come to them. And they did that.” 

Stonehill shot just 33.3% from the field, including 2-for-18 from beyond the arc. The Skyhawks committed 25 turnovers and put only two players in double figures. Portsmouth native Kylie Swider and Brooke Paquette each hit for 15 points — their teammates went a combined 5-for-28 from the floor. 

“Everyone wants to play offense,” Reiss said. “When that’s not flowing, will you do the other things? Tonight that’s what they did — and that’s who they are.” 

More: The madness starts Monday night for local college basketball teams. Here’s a breakdown

The Rams were led by a nice debut from San Diego transfer Harsimran Kaur. She finished with a game-high 19 points and 11 rebounds in 26 minutes. Kaur needed just this opening night to equal her one start with the Torreros last season. She came up a field goal shy of her career-high 21 points in a March game against Pepperdine. 

“This team, these girls, just make it easy for me to jump in and lead,” Kaur said. “I would give all the credit to my team and my coaches. They let me be comfortable in my own skin.” 

Kaur claimed an immediate role after the departures of frontcourt regulars Mayé Touré (Utah) and Tenin Magassa (Oklahoma State). Hawa Komara added 10 points and 13 boards while Anaelle Dutat chipped in four points and seven rebounds. 

“Watching all the film on her and her capabilities, I knew that she could be a double-double,” Reiss said. “It was finding someone who could replace Mayé and have an impact for our team.” 

How will URI generate some perimeter offense?  

Sophia Vital’s 3-pointer with 4:51 left in the second quarter was the team’s first field goal outside the paint. The Rams were just 4-for-17 from deep and didn’t make a free throw until Sophie Phillips knocked down her second of two with 3:24 to play in the first half. 

“It really was just settling down,” Reiss said. “That first game is always a little tight — a lot of missed layups, a lot of miscues, getting the jitters out.” 

Ines Debroise finished with eight points and seven assists against only one turnover in 24 minutes. She combined with Dutat and Komara to average just 10.3 points per game last season. They’ll need to produce before Palmire Mbu (NCAA requirements) is cleared after the season’s third game and freshman Ayanna Franks finds her way. 

“My job is to be the point guard,” Debroise said. “Just get to know all of my teammates and know where I can put them in the best position to score.” 

URI (1-0) put this one away late in the first half. 

It was a 20-20 game after Swider knocked down a jumper along the right baseline with 6:01 to play in the second quarter. Stonehill (0-1) was on the wrong end of a 17-3 run over the rest of the half, with the Rams allowing just 1-for-8 shooting. 

“They play hard for you,” Reiss said. “I told them the most important thing tonight was how hard we played.” 

Franks collected a team-high three steals, one of eight URI players who notched at least one. Kaur racked up four blocked shots before halftime, nearly half of the 10 recorded by the Rams in the game.  

bkoch@providencejournal.com

On X: @BillKoch25