LEOMINSTER — On Monday, June 24, 2024, at 2:46 p.m., Patrolman Michael Dingman of the Leominster Police Department was dispatched to UMass Memorial Health Alliance Leominster hospital at 60 Hospital Road. The call concerned a disgruntled former employee, identified as Darius Webb, attempting to visit someone in the hospital. During the screening before entering the emergency room (ER), Webb was found to be carrying a firearm.
Officers Molly Doherty, Oswaldo Ramos, and Justin Costa also responded to the scene.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narratives of Patrolman Dingman, Patrolman DeCesare, and Detective Colon, and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
The caller reported that Webb has since left the hospital in his truck and has been texting another employee, warning them to leave because “something is going to happen.”
According to police, Darius D. Webb, 27, is a resident of 36 Cranbrook Drive in Holden, MA.
When Patrolman Dingman arrived on the scene at approximately 2:49 p.m., he entered the ER waiting room and spoke with a security guard. The security guard stated that he was working in the ER waiting room when Darius, an ex-employee he knew, entered the lobby. While the two made small talk, Webb mentioned that he was there to see his two-year-old daughter. The security guard informed Webb that he needed to go through the metal detector if he wanted to see his daughter, as it was hospital policy. Webb then disclosed to the security guard that he was carrying a gun. The firearm was tucked into the front waistband of his pants without a holster, concealed under his Chicago Bulls jersey. (The security guard did not know what the make and model of the firearm was, Patrolman Dingman recounted; it was later identified as a Glock 19 9mm handgun.)
Webb then went back to his truck, a white Nissan Titan, and placed the firearm in the truck.
The security guard said Webb came back into the hospital and went up to the fourth floor, where he didn’t visit his daughter (because she wasn’t there), but spoke with a male nurse. Webb then came back down to the waiting room and spoke to a different security guard. Patrolman Dingman spoke with this second security guard, who said that Webb told him he was not there to see his daughter but to visit “Joe” and “give him a surprise.” The second guard said Webb then left the ER waiting room, walked to his truck, got in, and as he drove by the ER entrance, he rolled down his driver’s side window and placed his hand outside of it.
Patrolman Dingman then spoke with an ex-girlfriend of Webb who works at the hospital. She told the officer that they began dating in October of 2023 and broke up three months ago, but were still friends.
Webb’s ex-girlfriend informed the officer that she received a Snapchat message from Darius that morning. She explained that it was her birthday that day, and at approximately 11:22 a.m., Webb sent her a message saying, “Happy Birthday…see you soon.” She replied with a question mark around 11:35 a.m. At approximately 1:47 p.m., Webb messaged her again, saying, “Got a friend up there I’m coming to see.”
Webb’s ex-girlfriend said that she broke up with Webb because of his “suicidal behavior.”
“He would Facetime her and ask to see her. When she did not want to see him, he would place his firearm in his mouth making threats to harm himself,” Patrolman Dingman said. “[She] stated that Darius has PTSD, anxiety, and depression.”
Webb’s ex-girlfriend stated that when Webb arrived at the hospital that day, she hid from him in the security office out of fear. She believed that he lied about coming to visit a friend and was there to see her instead.
“She stated he did not make any threats to her today but because of their past she did not want him to see her,” Patrolman Dingman said. Adding, “She did not invite him to see her today.”
When Officer Doherty asked Webb’s ex-girlfriend if she wanted to file a 209A abuse prevention order, she declined.
Officer Dingman then spoke with another employee, a friend of Webb’s ex-girlfriend, who was working at the front desk of the ER waiting room when Webb came in that day.
“She noticed Darius come into the ER waiting room and have a firearm on his person,” Patrolman Dingman said. “He went upstairs after placing the firearm in his vehicle. He came back down to the waiting room and then left.”
As he exited the ER, the woman received a missed phone call from Webb on her personal cell phone at approximately 2:41 p.m. The woman said she called Webb back on her cell phone twice, once at approximately 2:42 p.m. for a call that lasted about 18 seconds, and a second time at approximately 2:44 p.m. for a call that lasted about 10 seconds.
“[The woman] stated Darius told her to ‘duck’ while on the phone call with her,” Patrolman Dingman said. “When Darius made this comment over the phone, he was driving by in his vehicle circling the ER parking lot.”
The woman told Patrolman Dingman that she did not see Webb in his truck with his hand sticking out of the driver’s side window because she was at her desk at the time and did not have a clear view of the parking lot.
“[The woman] hung up the phone and immediately went into the security office,” Patrolman Dingman said. “She knew [Webb’s ex-girlfriend] was inside and told her to duck.”
Afterwards, she checked her Snapchat and found a message from Darius sent at approximately 2:42 p.m. saying, “Get out…”
Patrolman Dingman then spoke with the head of security, Joseph [last name redacted], whom Webb referred to as “Joe.” Joseph stated that Webb had been employed at the hospital as a security guard but was terminated in February or March. He recalled an incident from last winter, possibly between November 2023 and January 2024, when Webb came to work intoxicated. After receiving complaints from co-workers about Webb being drunk, Joseph approached him and confirmed that he was indeed intoxicated.
“Darius began telling Joseph he wanted to harm himself and kill others,” Patrolman Dingman said. “Darius then showed Joseph a black firearm. Joseph grabbed the firearm and cleared it to make it safe. Joseph identified the firearm as a black Glock handgun. The firearm was then secured in Darius’ vehicle. Joseph then relayed the suicidal statements to a nurse/doctor in the ER. Joseph could not remember the name of the nurse/doctor who he told about the incident. Darius was then placed under a Section 12 and held for a couple days. I asked Joseph if a report would have been filed by him. He stated there is not a report on file. He stated the only report that would have been on file would have been from the nurse/doctor who placed the Section 12 on Darius. Joseph stated he believed Darius had a license to carry (LTC).”
Patrolman Dingman asked Joseph if the police were called for this incident. He said that police were not called because Webb told him, “If police show up, there will be a problem.”
Patrolman Dingman asked Joseph if Webb was terminated after this and he said that Webb kept his job.
Joseph said that the incident that resulted in Webb’s termination took place in February or March when Webb placed a small female Section 12 patient in a headlock.
After his termination, Webb was in the process of being hired by the police department in Holden, MA. Webb informed them of his previous employment at the hospital. Joseph was contacted by the Holden Police Department regarding Webb’s background check. Joseph relayed the incidents at the hospital to Holden police, leading to Webb no longer being considered a job candidate for the Holden Police Department.
“Joseph stated he heard from other co-workers at the hospital that Darius was upset with him. Joseph did not receive any direct threats from Darius. However, the information relayed to Joseph from his co-workers was that Darius blamed him for ruining his life and he wants to get back at Joseph,” Officer Dingman said. “I asked Joseph if there was any documentation of the termination incident at the hospital. He said he wrote up the report, but it was under a different security company at the time. He stated he was employed by Allied Universal which is no longer the security company with the hospital.”
Joseph stated he could look up the exact date of the incident and notify Officer Dingman tomorrow. Officer Dingman provided his work email for Joseph to send the information.
“I asked Joseph if I could have the video footage (interior/exterior) covering the incident that took place with Darius. Joseph stated I would need to get a search warrant for the footage,” Patrolman Dingman said.
Officer Dingman then went to the fourth floor to speak with the male nurse regarding his encounter with Webb. The nurse said that Webb told him that he was there to see his former spouses’ two-year-old daughter who checked in approximately two weeks ago.
“[The nurse] already knew no children were in the area he works and advised him the only children that would be in this hospital would be in the emergency room otherwise they would be transferred to Worcester,” Officer Dingman said. “[The nurse] stated Darius seemed strange as his behavior was oddly nice. He also spoke very fast to him. [The nurse] stated he directed Darius to the ER since he was looking for his child. Darius then left the fourth floor.”
While Patrolman Dingman was gathering this information, Officer Doherty overheard a conversation Webb’s ex-girlfriend was having about having Webb’s GPS location on Snapchat. The officer obtained Webb’s GPS location from his ex-girlfriend and then provided the coordinates to the state police who had just arrived on scene.
State police put out a BOLO (Be On The Lookout) notification and shortly thereafter, Webb was taken into custody by Holden police at his residence located at 36 Cranbook Drive in Holden. While Holden police were taking him into custody, they located a Glock 19 9mm handgun that was holstered to his left pants pocket. The Glock had a magazine with one round of Winchester 9mm hollow point bullets and two .380 MFS target rounds.
Leominster Police Officers Shane Crawford and Noah DeCesare went to the Holden Police Department to pick up Webb and transport him back to the Leominster Police Department for booking. Holden police also handed over the confiscated Glock 19 9mm handgun from Webb to Leominster police.
“While we were en route to the Leominster Police Department, Mr. Webb had asked if he would be getting his firearm back in the future, to which Officer Crawford informed him that we did not have any answers to his questions because of the ongoing investigation and to refrain from asking anyone as Mr. Webb had not been given his Miranda rights yet,” Patrolman DeCesare said.
After Webb was booked at the Leominster Police Department, Detective Oswaldo Ramos and Detective Leonardo Colon interviewed Webb, while Patrolman Dingman confirmed that Webb did not have a license to carry.
“While speaking with Mr. Webb, during an audio-recorded interview after being advised of his Miranda rights, he disclosed to Detective Ramos and me that he was in possession of a firearm in the City of Leominster,” Detective Colon said. “Mr. Webb stated that he had his firearm on his person in his motor vehicle during the afternoon of June 24, 2024, while at the UMass Health Alliance Leominster Hospital.”
Webb was transported from the Holden Police Department to the Leominster Police Department for booking.
Webb was formally charged with the following:
- Assault with a Dangerous Weapon
- Terroristic Threats
- Carrying a Firearm without a license
- Possession of Ammunition without FID Card
Webb was arraigned in Leominster District Court on June 25, 2024.
Webb attended a dangerousness hearing on June 28, 2024. After the hearing, Webb was found to be dangerous. He was ordered held without bail until Oct. 21, 2024.
On July 22, 2024, Webb’s attorney filed a petition to appeal Webb’s bail. It was filed and forwarded to Worcester Superior Court.
On July 25, 2024, the dangerousness finding was reversed in Worcester Superior Court. Webb’s bail was set at $1,000 cash/$10,000 surety, with GPS supervision.
On July 26, 2024, Webb posted bail.
On July 29, 2024, Webb attended a probable cause hearing, which was continued to Aug. 12, 2024.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from June, 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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