No Bail for Haverhill Man Who Allegedly Pulls Knife on Police, Neighbors

(WHAV News file photograph.)

A city man Haverhill Police say admitted to being off his medication for three weeks was ordered held without bail Thursday for allegedly pulling a knife on two police officers during a tense standoff at his Old Ferry Road home.

According to court papers obtained by WHAV, 55-year-old disabled veteran Stephen Vavak approached his 69-year-old neighbor Thursday afternoon after she told him his handyman services were no longer needed around her property. Haverhill Police Officer Kevin Billings reports the woman said Vavak “showed her a knife and told her ‘If you were to stab someone with this knife in the stomach, they will bleed out and die.’”

The woman also told police she was disturbed by the fact that Vavak alluded to purchasing guns online even though he “wasn’t allowed” to legally own them. A second complaining witness told Billings Vavak had also mentioned purchasing a “room full of Nazi paraphernalia” he keeps under lock and key.

The women also allege Vavak pulled a knife on another neighbor, telling him “I’m a Nazi and I don’t like anyone.”

When Billings and Officer Kevin DeCarvalho went to Vavak’s Old Ferry Road home for a well-being check, he greeted them with a string of expletives. Billings said the man knew his neighbors were the reason police were called to his home, and he told officers he had been off his medication for three weeks before ordering them to “Get the f—k off (his) property.”

DeCarvahlo was forced to point his gun at Vavek when he feared for his safety and that of his partner once they saw a silver Kaber knife with a red handle in Vavek’s waistband. The man “immediately complied, threw the knife and laid on the ground,” at that time, Billings said.

After being handcuffed, Vavak “calmed down dramatically.” During the ride to the Bailey Boulevard police station, he peppered Billings with questions about the type of weapons police carry and seemed “fascinated” by topics like ammunition, the officer said.

Vavak next appears in court later this month.

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