LEOMINSTER — On Friday, May 31, 2024, at 2:06 a.m., Sergeant Ryan Morrell of the Leominster Police Department was dispatched to where Chuck E. Cheese used to be at The Mall at Whitney Field, following a report of a break-in in progress.
Patrolman Avery Benvissuto and Officer Brett Bourne were also called to the scene.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narratives of Patrolman Benvissuto and Sergeant Morrell and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
The incident was called into police by a tow truck driver who stated that he saw four kids dressed in black break through the door of the now defunct Chuck E. Cheese and enter the mall. The caller added that the individuals were possibly heading toward Burlington Coat Factory.
When police arrived on scene, they observed that the bottom glass portion of the main door to the former Chuck E. Cheese restaurant had been shattered inwards.
“Looking inside of the building it appeared that the store was vacant, however, remnants of the past business remained,” Sgt. Morrell said.
Due to the size of the mall, Sgt. Morrell requested the assistance of Massachusetts State Police. Additional officers from the Leominster Police Department were dispatched to the scene to cover all access points at the mall.
“Other responding Leominster Police Officers surrounded multiple exits to keep potential suspects within the mall to prevent escape,” Patrolman Benvissuto said. “A Massachusetts State Police (MSP) K-9 Unit arrived on-scene shortly after our arrival. That K-9 unit, Sergeant Morrell, a Trooper, and I made entry through the broken glass door. The K-9 unit gave verbal warnings that anyone within the building needed to make themselves known or else the dog would be released.”
Four individuals, later identified as Leah Rathburn, 18, of Athol, Jackson Cosker, 18, of Gardner, Sebastian Fontaine, 19, of Gardner, and a 17-year-old juvenile male emerged from the right-rear corner of Chuck E. Cheese wearing dark clothing.
The individuals were taken into custody inside the building.
Sgt. Morrell explained that since Chuck E. Cheese was vacant and undergoing reconstruction, there was no safe exit from the building. To avoid potential injuries from exiting through the smashed door pane, police broke through the sheetrock wall in the old Chuck E. Cheese into the main part of the mall and then escorted those in custody to the parking lot.
A property manager later responded to the scene and was briefed by police on the breaking and entering as well as the broken sheetrock.
All of those in custody were escorted to the Leominster Police Station for booking. Each individual was formally charged with:
- Breaking & Entering in the Nighttime with Intent to Commit a Felony
- Defacement/Damage of Property (Vandalism)
Jackson Cosker’s bail was set at $1,000. (Bail for the other arrestees was not included in the FOIA request obtained by News Link Live).
All individuals were arraigned in Leominster District Court on May 31, 2024.
A pretrial hearing (for Cosker) is scheduled on July 19, 2024.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from late May, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to get the court documents for the incident. FOIAs are time consuming.
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