Three arrested after multiagency pursuit linked to Woonsocket shooting and cocaine trafficking

WEBSTER — On Friday, Aug. 1, 2025, at about 1:30 p.m., Webster police were notified that a vehicle pursued by Douglas and Uxbridge police officers was heading into Webster.

According to a statement from the Webster Police Department, just prior to this, the vehicle was being pursued by the Woonsocket and North Smithfield, RI, police departments.

Webster police were informed that the vehicle’s occupants might have been involved in a shooting incident in Woonsocket a week ago. They were later identified as Pedro Santiago, Yankuba Diop, and Chayliana Carr, who police say are known to carry firearms and distribute narcotics.

Deputy Chief Gordon Wentworth, Detective Sergeant Christopher Trainor, Officer Aaron Suss, and Detective Timothy Whiting responded to Route 16 after the vehicle entered Webster. Its tires had already been damaged by a stop-stick deployment in Douglas.

“As the vehicle came down Douglas Road and onto Gore Road, Detective Whiting deployed his stop-sticks which popped additional tires. The vehicle subsequently crashed through a telephone pole, becoming disabled,” the Webster Police Department said in its statement.

The three suspects abandoned the vehicle and ran on foot into separate wooded areas along Gore Road.

Officers from the Webster and Uxbridge police departments searched the area, setting up perimeters as Sergeant Robert Larochelle deployed a police drone. The Massachusetts State Police Air Wing and multiple K9 units also responded to assist in the search.

At approximately 2:58 p.m., The South Worcester County Communication Center (SWCCC), which serves as the dispatch center for the towns of Webster and Dudley, received a 911 call from a woman who reported that she had been kidnapped at gunpoint inside a residence on Ronnie Drive.

Responding officers determined the 911 call was false and had been placed by suspect Chayliana Carr in an attempt to divert police from the area where she was believed to be hiding.

After about 30 minutes, and with help from the public, officers and troopers found Carr hiding in a small cave in the woods. She ran when ordered to surrender, but a Charlton Police K9 was deployed, aiding in her apprehension. Carr was then taken into custody by Webster officers.

The search for the remaining suspects continued until about 3:45 p.m., when an off-duty Uxbridge police officer told dispatchers he had seen one of them get into a vehicle on Douglas Road.

Douglas police stopped the vehicle and arrested the second suspect, Yankuba Diop, who was later transferred to Uxbridge police custody. With help from several homeowners, Webster police officers recovered 12 grams of crack cocaine and 148 grams of cocaine discarded by the suspects. A state trooper also found 106 grams of crack cocaine in Douglas, thrown from the vehicle during the pursuit. The third suspect, Pedro Santiago, was not located.

Several days later, Detective Sergeant Trainor obtained an arrest warrant for Santiago from Dudley District Court. The Uxbridge Police Department also secured a separate warrant for him through Uxbridge District Court.

On Friday, Aug. 15, Woonsocket police saw Santiago and pursued him, with the chase ending in Worcester after state police took over. He fled into a stranger’s apartment before surrendering to state and Worcester officers. Carr, out on bail from her recent arrest, was with him at the time. Troopers recovered 78 grams of cocaine from Santiago during the arrest.

Chayliana Carr, 25, of Hill Street, Woonsocket, RI, was arrested by Webster police and charged with the following:

1. Disorderly Conduct
2. Disturbing the Peace
3. Resisting Arrest
4. Interfere with a Police Officer  
5. Trafficking 100 Grams or More of Cocaine
6. Possession to Distribute Crack Cocaine
7. Conspiracy

Yankuba Diop, 27, of Adams Street, Woonsocket, RI., was charged by Webster police with the following:

1. Disturbing the Peace (two counts)
2. Resisting Arrest
3. Trafficking 100 Grams or More of Cocaine
4. Possession to Distribute Crack Cocaine
5. Conspiracy

In addition, Diop was charged by Uxbridge police with the following:

1. Trafficking Crack Cocaine
2. Conspiracy
3. Withholding Evidence
4. Possession to Distribute Crack Cocaine  
5. Possess Class B Drug

Pedro Santiago, 27, of Diamond Hill Road, Woonsocket, RI., was charged by Webster Police for the following:

1. Failure to Stop for Police
2. Leaving the Scene of Property Damage
3. Unlicensed Operation, 4. Disorderly Conduct
4. Disturbing the Peace, 6. Resisting Arrest
5. Trafficking 100 Grams or More of Cocaine
6. Possession to Distribute Crack Cocaine
7. Conspiracy

Santiago was also charged with the following by the Uxbridge Police Department:

1. Trafficking Cocaine
2. Possession to Distribute Crack Cocaine
3. Possess Class B Drug
4. Withholding Evidence from a Criminal Proceeding

The Webster Police Department said that due to the second pursuit by Massachusetts State Police (MSP), Santiago was also charged by MSP the with the following:

1. Trafficking Cocaine
2. Possess Class A Drug
3. Possess Class B Drug
4. Trespassing
5. Disorderly Conduct