AYER — On Thursday, April 3, 2025, at approximately 9:38 a.m., Officer Jared Splaine of the Ayer Police Department was dispatched to the Bubble-It Laundromat on Park Street following a report of past suspicious activity.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Statement of Facts of Officer Splaine and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“The reporting party, Frank [last name redacted], met with me in the back office,” Officer Splaine said. “Frank told me that, during the overnight hours between 1:30 a.m. and 5:00 a.m., a male party was inside of the laundromat behaving oddly. The behavior was discovered when Frank noticed that several security cameras had been moved.”
Officer Splaine said that he reviewed the security footage with Frank.
“On the footage, I observed the male party, later identified as Jonathan Brown, behaving in a strange manner,” Officer Splaine said. “Jonathan altered the positioning of two security cameras. Jonathan then walked over to a stack of laundry that did not belong to him. Jonathan began rifling through the pile of clothes, one by one, as if looking for something. Jonathan took off his pants, put on a pair of blue yoga pants, then put his pants back on. Jonathan then found a DoorDash marked tote and began stuffing clothing into it. Jonathan then placed this tote into his own backpack.”
According to police, Jonathan J. Brown, 24, is homeless.
“Jonathan appeared to sleep on one of the folding tables for a short time. It appears that Jonathan left the laundromat around 5:00 a.m. this morning with the backpack containing the stolen clothing,” Officer Splaine said. “According to Frank, the clothing that was stolen from the laundromat had been sitting on a bench in the laundromat unclaimed for ‘a couple weeks,’ which Frank says happens from time to time. As of the writing of this report, no one has come forward to claim the clothing.”
Frank told Officer Splaine that he wanted Brown trespassed from the laundromat as well.
Officer Splaine said that in the surveillance footage, Brown was wearing a black jacket with the word “Wendy’s” stitched into the left breast.
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“I traveled to Wendy’s Restaurant in Ayer and showed a picture from the security footage to the shift manager,” Officer Splain said. “[The shift manager] provided me with information that enabled me to positively identify Jonathan.”
The shift manager told Officer Splaine that Brown was scheduled to start work at 4:00 p.m. that day.
“I waited outside the Wendy’s restaurant near Jonathan’s scheduled arrival time,” Officer Splaine said. “At 4:05 p.m., I noticed a green Kia Soul pull into the parking lot of Wendy’s. Jonathan got out of the rear passenger’s seat and headed towards the inside of the restaurant. I pulled into the lot and met two employees outside. I instructed the employees to go inside and bring Jonathan out. The employees did so.”
Officer Splaine then asked Brown to follow him outside to the front of the restaurant.
“I asked Jonathan if he was at the laundromat in downtown Ayer last night,” Officer Splaine said. “Jonathan said he went there to charge his phone. The footage showed Jonathan charging his phone on a portable charger that did not require an outlet. then asked Jonathan if he consumed any alcohol or drugs that may impair his memory and he said no. I asked Jonathan if he took anything from the laundromat and he said no. I asked Jonathan if he took any clothing and he said he might have taken some shirts. I asked Jonathan if he thought that taking the shirts was okay and he replied ‘it was just shirts, what are you getting at?’”
At this time, Officer Alexia Surprenant and Officer James Crawford then arrived on scene.
“I ordered Jonathan to turn around and place his hands behind his back,” Officer Splaine said. “Jonathan complied. I placed Jonathan in handcuffs (double-locked) and checked for proper fit.”
Brown was searched by Officer Crawford and then placed in the back of a cruiser and then transported to the police station for booking. Officer Splaine said that Brown’s backpack was recovered from the Wendy’s with no clothing inside.
“During booking, once mirandized, Jonathan told me that he had taken shirts, long johns, a blanket, and a DoorDash bag,” Officer Splaine said. “Jonathan told me that these items were currently in his hotel room. Jonathan told me that we ‘are making a big deal,’ and that the laundromat has posted signs stating that the laundromat is not liable for stolen property. I informed Jonathan that the liability release posting does not make it legal to steal clothing that does not belong to him.”
Brown was charged with:
- Larceny from Building
Brown was arraigned in Ayer District Court on April 4, 2025.
Following his arraignment, Brown was placed on pretrial probation until July 3, 2025. He was released on personal recognizance under the condition that he stay away from the Bubble-It Laundromat.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from April, 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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