WINCHENDON — On Saturday, April 12, 2025, at approximately 10:30 p.m., a resident of 36 Spring Street reported to police that an intoxicated woman was banging on his apartment door, trying to force her way inside.
Winchendon Police Officers Dylan Mei and Alexander Favreau were dispatched to the scene.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narratives of Winchendon Police Officers Dylan Mei and Alexander Favreau and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“Upon our arrival, I noticed three males yelling in the common hallway,” Officer Mei said.
Officer Favreau entered the reporting party’s apartment and observed a woman—later identified as Anna Stowell—on top of the reporting party in his bed, engaged in a physical struggle.
“We entered the room and Anna was removed from [the reporting party],” Officer Mei said.
According to police, Anna B. Stowell, 37, is a resident of 36 Spring Street in Winchendon, MA.
Officer Mei stated that as he and Officer Favreau attempted to detain Stowell, there was a man on crutches at the top of the stairs in the hallway yelling.
“At the same of us trying to detain Anna for further investigation, [the man on crutches] fell head first down the stairs,” Officer Mei said.
Officer Mei said that while Officer Favreau was placing handcuffs on Stowell, he attempted to help the man on crutches stand up, but the man continued yelling, refused assistance, and directed insults at him.
“He wanted to stay on the ground,” Officer Mei said on the man on crutches.
Officer Favreau said he handcuffed Stowell with her hands behind her back but, due to the chaos of the scene, was unable to double-lock the handcuffs. He noted that she appeared to be heavily intoxicated during the encounter.
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At this time, Sergeant Raymond Anair and Officer Daniel Caputi arrived on scene and escorted Stowell out of the building.
“Sgt. Anair asked Officer Favreau what he saw and Officer Favreau said he saw Anna on top of [the reporting party] wrestling him,” Officer Mei recounted. “Sgt. Anair and Officer Caputi placed Anna in the rear of [a cruiser] and transported her for booking and processing for assault and battery in a police officer’s presence.”
Sergeant Anair and Officer Caputi placed Stowell in the rear of a cruiser and transported her to the Winchendon Police Department for booking and processing on a charge of assault and battery in a police officer’s presence, Officer Mei said.
Officer Mei said that the man on crutches, upset that Anna had been placed in handcuffs, continued to yell and use vulgar language. “He claimed I did not have a bodycam on and I pointed at it clipped to the outside of my jacket,” Officer Mei said. Adding, “He claimed it wasn’t on. I looked down and pressed the activation button several times, but the bodycam continued to be unresponsive.”
Officer Mei said that Officer Favreau called Winchendon EMS to evaluate the reporting party for possible injuries, noting that he had some blood and small cuts on his left hand. When EMTs arrived, the reporting party said he was okay and refused medical attention. While they were still on scene, Officer Mei asked the man on crutches if he wanted to be evaluated since he had fallen down the stairs, but he also claimed he was okay.
“Officer Favreau and I spoke with [the reporting party] to figure out what prompted this argument,” Officer Mei said. “[The reporting party] said he did nothing and believed it to be a random act of aggression. [He] claimed he heard yelling and banging on his door and opened it to Anna screaming at him. [The reporting party] also added Anna just moved into the apartment in March.”
Officer Favreau spoke with another resident of the apartment building who allegedly corroborated the reporting party’s story.
“According to [the witness], [the reporting party] told Anna to go away,” Officer Mei said. “Anna then entered [the reporting party’s] apartment and started physically assaulting him.”
Officer Mei and Officer Favreau then cleared the scene.
“At around midnight, Anna claimed she had chest pains and an unknown heart condition,” Officer Mei said. “I told Anna she would be handcuffed and an officer would accompany her to Heywood Hospital. Winchendon EMS was [called] and transported her (she was handcuffed in the rear and handcuffed at the ankles). Officer Caputi followed the ambulance to Heywood Hospital.”
“While the ambulance was in transit, they had to pull over at the junction of Route 12 and Route 140 due to Anna’s assaultive behavior towards the EMTs,” Officer Mei said. “Officer Caputi called for backup and Officer Favreau and I responded.”
Upon arriving at Officer Caputi’s location, Officer Mei observed that a State Trooper was also on scene, providing assistance.
“Anna was being uncooperative and kept getting up off the stretcher (she was still handcuffed behind the back and at the ankles),” Officer Mei said.
Officer Mei said that an EMT asked Stowell why she was acting aggressively, then explained that she was being taken to the hospital for her chest pains in an attempt to help her.
“[The EMT] asked if she was lying about having chest pains,” Officer Mei said. “Anna responded, ‘Facts!’ (slang for agreeing or acknowledging the truth of a statement).”
After it was determined that Stowell did not require medical attention, she was placed in the rear of a cruiser and transported back to the holding facility at the Winchendon Police Station.
Officer Mei said that Officer Caputi told him Stowell kicked him in the chest and spat in the face of a firefighter/EMT.
Stowell’s bail was set at $1,500.
Stowell was charged with the following:
- Assault & Battery
- Assault & Battery on Police Officer
- Assault & Battery on Ambulance Personnel
- Breaking & Entering for Misdemeanor
Stowell was arraigned in Winchendon District Court on April 14, 2025. Following her arraignment, she was released on personal recognizance under the condition that she stay away from/not contact the victim and stay drug free and submit to drug screens.
Stowell appeared for a pretrial hearing on May 6, 2025, which was continued to June 11, 2025.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in April, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
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