Athol man accused of stealing over $257 in goods from Hannaford also found with crack cocaine

ATHOL — On Sunday, June 22, 2025, at about 5:45 p.m., Athol Police Officer Zachary Duguay said dispatch received two calls — one from the manager and another from an employee of the Hannaford supermarket at 150 New Athol Road — reporting that a man in black shorts and a black sweatshirt had just shoplifted from the store.

(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Zachary Duguay and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)

Officer John Duguay and Officer Alex Griffin responded to Hannaford to assist.

“Officer Griffin arrived in front of Hannafords and located Justin Dodge, who is known to the Athol Police Department and matched the clothing description provided by Hannafords staff,” Officer Duguay said. “Officer Griffin spoke with Mr. Dodge and detained him. Mr. Dodge denied shoplifting from the store despite staff indicating to Officer Griffin that Mr. Dodge was the shoplifter.”

According to police, Justin J. Dodge, 36, is a resident of Partridgeville Road, Athol, MA.

Officer Duguay said he escorted Dodge to a bench near the supermarket, where he took a seat.

“As Mr. Dodge sat, a small white bottle fell from his persons and landed on the ground,” Officer Duguay said. “Mr. Dodge did not attempt to retrieve the item. Mr. Dodge was shaking and appeared visibly nervous while continuing to state that he did not steal anything from the store.”

Officer Duguay asked Dodge about the bottle that had fallen, and Dodge said it was not his. When asked if he had stolen the bottle from the store, Dodge replied that he had not.

Officer Duguay told Dodge that store staff and security cameras would show he had stolen from the store and urged him to be honest.

“Mr. Dodge then admitted he shoplifted,” Officer Duguay said. “While Officer Duguay spoke with Mr. Dodge, Officer Griffin went toward Speedee’s to locate the shoplifted items that Mr. Dodge had tossed aside. Officer Griffin retrieved the items and presented them to staff to allow them to itemize the list and value the property that was taken.”

Officer Duguay said he then read Dodge his Miranda rights, and Dodge said he understood.

Officer Duguay told Dodge that being honest would help him in the long run. Officer Duguay then asked Dodge why he chose to lie in the first place.

“Mr. Dodge stated he was scared and was on ‘hard times,’” Officer Duguay said. “Mr. Dodge stated the items he took were male hygiene products as he did not have any at his residence and could not afford them. Officer Duguay advised Mr. Dodge that his person was going to be searched as well.”

Officer Duguay said Dodge then handed him a broken glass pipe containing burnt residue, which is commonly used for smoking crack cocaine.

“Mr. Dodge stated the glass pipe was his,” Officer Duguay said. “Mr. Dodge also provided a small rubber container and stated it had crack cocaine inside of it.”

Officer Duguay said that before he could seize the drugs, Dodge emptied the crack cocaine onto the ground. Officer Griffin then handcuffed Dodge.

“A further search of Mr. Dodge’s person was conducted and all of his property was placed inside his backpack,” Officer Duguay said.

Officer Duguay then entered Hannafords to follow up with staff and to look at security camera footage of the incident.

“In the cameras, Mr. Dodge could be seen taking multiple hygiene products from the shelves, placing them in his sweatshirt and blue bag, and exiting the store,” Officer Duguay said. “One of the staff members who followed Mr. Dodge outside the store demanded Mr. Dodge drop the items on the ground, to which Mr. Dodge can be seen running with the items away from the store.”

Before leaving the security room, Officer Duguay obtained an itemized list from staff showing the stolen merchandise totaled $257.25.

Officer Duguay then informed Dodge that he was under arrest for shoplifting and possession of a Class B substance in connection with the crack cocaine.

Officer Duguay then placed Dodge in the rear of his cruiser and transported him to the Athol Police Department for booking.

Officer Duguay contacted Bail Commissioner Marianne Kissane to make arrangements for Dodge’s bail.

“Ms. Kissane set Mr. Dodge’s bail at personal recognizance,” Officer Duguay said. “Mr. Dodge was advised of this. Ms. Kissane arrived to process bail shortly after, to which Mr. Dodge was bailed on his own personal recognizance and escorted out of the station.”

Justin Dodge was charged with the following:

• Shoplifting $250+ by Asportation
• Possess Class B Drug

Dodge was arraigned in Orange District Court on June 23, 2025. Following his arraignment, Dodge attended a status hearing on July 21, 2025. His next court date is a pretrial hearing scheduled for Aug. 18, 2025.

Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in June, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.

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