Man evades Athol police after violently attacking ex while staying with new girlfriend next door

ATHOL — On Monday, Oct. 9, 2023, at approximately 10:48 p.m., Officers Paul Forand and Cody Vitols of the Athol Police Department were dispatched to an apartment at 456 Main Street after a woman reported that her ex-boyfriend was at her apartment and she wanted him to leave.

(The account and quotations in this article were taken from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Forand. The Personnel Narrative was provided to News Link Live by the Orange District Court on March 18, 2024, in response to a FOIA request.)

While the woman, aged 36, was speaking with Dispatcher Madison Chevarie, Chevarie heard the caller yell out repeatedly “give me the phone back.” Chevarie then heard what sounded like a male running with the phone.

When Officers Forand and Vitols arrived at the caller’s apartment, Officers Steve Adams and Zachary Duguay were responding from Exchange Street. Officer Duguay saw a man running across Exchange Street from behind the Pequoig House Apartment building. Officer Forand said the Pequoig House Apartments, located at 416 Main Street, are one building away from 456 Main Street. The man was reportedly wearing a camo hoodie with a bright green shirt underneath it and gray sweatpants.

“It is likely that if someone exited the rear door of 456 Main Street, it would take a very short time to get to Exchange Street,” Officer Forand said. “Officers knew that the male was running from the scene due to Dispatcher Chevarie’s observations while on the phone, so they began to search for the male running.”

Officer Duguay then saw the man run into the parking lot of the Athol Savings Bank. When Officer Adams and Duguay drove closer to the man, they saw him near the back of the Salvation Army on Ridge Avenue.

 “When the male saw the cruiser, he ran down Walnut Street,” Officer Forand said. “Wile officers were searching the area, it was learned from [the caller who was] speaking with Officer Vitols that the male was Mr. Derek Wills. It was also learned that his current girlfriend lived on Maple Street. If someone were to leave 456 Main Street on foot and head in the direction of Maple Street, the shortest route would be to walk behind the Pequoig Apartments, through the Athol Savings Bank parking lot, down Walnut Street, and onto Maple Street. [The caller] did not know the girlfriend’s name and did not know the actual address.”

According to police, Derek Wills, 33, is a resident of 20 Street Apartment G in Turner Falls, MA.

At this time, Officers Forand and Vitols left 456 Main Street to assist the other officers in their search for Wills around Walnut and Maple streets. The officers were unable to locate Wills after a search of the area.

Officer Vitols went back to the caller’s apartment to speak with her while the other officers continued to search for Wills.

The woman told Officer Vitols that Wills came to her apartment and started kicking her door. Officer Vitols observed that the door to the apartment was – in fact – damaged. The caller said she opened the door because she was afraid he would kick it in because he has done that in the past. Wills then entered the apartment and the two began to argue in the kitchen area. The argument moved into the bedroom. At this point, the woman said she grabbed her phone in an attempt to call the police. Wills then punched her in the face with a closed fist and grabbed her phone. He then left the apartment with the phone and began running.

“This is when Dispatcher Chevarie heard what she thought was someone running,” Officer Forand explained.

The woman said that she and will were in a relationship for four years, but they were presently separated.

When Officer Vitols asked the woman is she needed medical attention, she said no.

Officer Vitols then informed the woman of her restraining order rights and asked her to write a statement.

“[The woman] then walked to the police station and when presented with the paperwork then denied the order and exited the station,” Officer Forand said. “Derek’s Registry of Motor Vehicle address comes back to a residence in Turner Falls, MA. It is evident that Derek lives or stays in the Athol area due to his girlfriend living in Athol.”

Since Wills hadn’t been taken into custody yet, Officer Forand issued a warrant for the following charges:

1. Assault and Battery on Family/Household Member for punching his ex-girlfriend in the face with a closed fist.
2. Intimidation of a Witness for grabbing his ex-girlfriend’s phone out of her hand while she was attempting to call police to report a crime.
3. Larceny from a Building for taking and carrying away, from the building, a phone belonging to his ex-girlfriend with the intent to permanently deprive her of it.
4. Vandalize property for maliciously breaking and damaging his ex-girlfriend’s phone.
5. Enter Building without Break at Night for entering his ex-girlfriend’s apartment at 456 Main Street at nighttime without breaking in (the woman opened the door in fear of additional damage) with the intent to commit a felony (listed charges above) while the woman (lawfully present) was put in fear.

No further information was provided to News Link Live in the Freedom of Information Request provided by Orange District Court.

Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from October, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to get the court documents for the incident. FOIAs are time consuming.