WEBSTER — On Tuesday, September 2, 2025, at approximately 12:55 a.m., Officer Alex Johnson of the Webster Police Department was dispatched to the area of 11 Perryville Road following a report of a disturbance.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Alex Johnson and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
Sergeant Derek Mroczek and Officer Sean Ebbeling also responded to the scene.
“The caller, [name redacted], stated there were numerous individuals outside her residence with tasers, walking back and forth on a wooded trail that was behind her house,” Officer Johnson said. “[She] told dispatch she didn’t know who the individuals were and that they were activating their tasers, which she could see through the woods.”
While officers were responding to the scene a dispatcher informed police that she heard a single gunshot in the background of the call.
“With this new information, Sergeant Mroczek requested mutual aid assistance from the Dudley Police Department, Massachusetts State Police and Connecticut State Police (due to the close proximity of the MA/CT state border),” Officer Johnson said. “Officer Ebbeling and I were the first two Officers to arrive on scene. With the report of a gun shot being fired, which created a potential lethal situation, I deployed my department issued patrol rifle. Officer Ebbeling and I began speaking with several individuals on scene who would later be identified as [name redacted] (the caller). Joshua [last name redacted], Daniel [last name redacted] and Kailee [last name redacted]. It was learned that all four parties were outside of 11 Perryville Road, hanging out in the rear patio area.”
The caller and her three friends told Officer Johnson that three individuals began yelling at them through the woods and shining a flashlight in their direction. The individuals in the woods also had tasers and were activating them, which the caller and her friends could see flashing through the trees.
“[The caller] and her friends further stated that it looked like two females and one male, and they may have been on a path that leads up to a residence on School Street. This residence would later be identified as 1184 School Street,” Officer Johnson said. “[The caller] went on to say that one of the females yelled out, ‘We won’t bite, we just want to talk, we just want to talk,’ while flashing a flashlight at the group. Several minutes later, Edward [last name redacted] and Malak [last name redacted] arrived at 11 Perryville Road to hang out with [the caller] and her friends. [The caller] told Edward and Malak what had just occurred, which is when Edward stated he drove his vehicle over to the parking lot of the construction site, with Malak in the passenger’s seat.”
Officer Johnson noted that the construction site – at 7 Perryville Road – belongs to M&M Excavators.
“There are two buildings on the property of this construction site, which are separated by at least 50 feet,” Officer Johnson said. “Between the two buildings there is a grassy hill that leads up to the backyard of 1184 School Street.”
Edward told Officer Johnson that as he and Malak pulled into the parking lot of M&M Excavators, he heard someone from the top of hill yell out, “Who’s in that car?”
“Shorty after that, Edward and Malak both stated they saw a laser and heard a gunshot that came from the grassy hill area,” Officer Johnson said. “Malak stated she believed that they were shot at as it appeared that a male was shooting a gun in their direction. Right after this happened, Malak stated she heard a female yell, ‘Why did you do that Brandon? Why did you do that? We have to get out of here!’ Due to believing they were just shot at, Edward said he sped off in his vehicle to try and get away. Within seconds after this, officers arrived on Perryville Road.”
Officer Johnson radioed Sergeant Mroczek to report the information he had gathered, including the victims’ claim that they had been shot at.
“Sergeant Mraczek requested additional resources to the scene to set up a perimeter including police K9s,” Officer Johnson said. “State Police K9 Sergeant Doherty responded and deployed his K9 in the area. Charlton and Southbridge police K9 officers also responded to assist. While a K9 track was being conducted, I deployed the department issued drone to get a better aerial view of the surrounding area. After negative findings with the drone and the K9 track, I spoke with the victims again and requested one of them show me the area of where the suspects had been standing when he was shot at. Edward showed me the grassy hill area between the two buildings at M&M Excavating. Edward stated that they were standing on the property of ‘that house,’ pointing to the blue residence located at 1184 School Street.”
Officer Johnson said that, as the investigation continued, Officer Ebbeling spoke with a separate witness who resided on School Street, identified as Gary Baldyga.
“Gary told Officer Ebbeling that he heard a loud gun shot, which sounded like a shotgun blast. Right after he heard the gunshot, Gary said he saw three individuals run over to a dark colored Ford Explorer and take off down School Street,” Officer Johnson said. “It should be noted that Officer Ebbeling stated as he was responding to this call for service, he saw a dark gray Ford Explorer leaving the area.”
Officer Johnson stated that, based on witness statements, it was more likely than not that the suspects had been on or near the property at 1184 School Street.
“This address belongings to Jessica Mason. Officer Ebbeling conducted a social media investigation and located a Facebook page for Jessica Mason,” Officer Johnson said. “Officer Ebbeling then went into Jessica’s friend’s list and located a Brandon Boyle. Officer Ebbeling looked on Brandon’s Facebook page and saw that he had a picture of a dark gray Ford Explorer on his page. Officer Ebbeling was able to obtain a license plate from the picture, which was MA PC [# redacted]. This vehicle was registered to Celeste Sgariglia, of 21 Poland Street, Apartment #1 in Webster. Based on the totality of the circumstances, officers had reasonable suspicion to believe that the Ford Explorer pictured in Brandon’s Facebook was more likely than not the vehicle used in the shooting.”
According to police, Brandon C. Boyle, 34, is a resident of Juniper Lane in Webster, MA.
“All officers cleared from Perryville Road and proceeded to [# redacted] Juniper Lane, Brandon Boyle’s address,” Officer Johnson said. “Officers were unable to locate the suspect vehicle that was used on Juniper Lane. We then proceeded to 21 Poland Street, where the vehicle was registered to. As we parked on the street, we located the Ford Explorer parked with no one inside. Officers and troopers set up a perimeter around the residence. After knocking for approximately 10 minutes, Celeste and Brandon came out of apartment [# redacted]. A protective sweep was completed by Officer Ebbeling and Officer Lara, of the Dudley Police Department. While conducting a protective sweep, Officer Ebbeling observed a rifle in the closet area with a cable lock through it.”
Officer Johnson said the apartment was secured pending a search warrant.
“I interviewed Brandon on the front steps of the apartment, after advising him of his Miranda warnings. Brandon did wish to speak with me,” Officer Johnson said. “During our conversation, Brandon told me he was at ‘Jess’ Mason’s house. I asked Brandon to describe the house to me. Brandon said it was a blue house with the ‘shop’ behind it. Brandon kept asking me what was going on. At one point, Brandon blurts out, ‘Nothing happened tonight.’ I told Brandon that I never said anything happened. I then asked Brandon how long he was at Jessica’s residence for, to which he responds ‘Maybe, 20 minutes. She was having an issue; someone was at her door.’ Brandon goes on to say that Jessica called him and his girlfriend because she was scared due to someone being at her sliding glass door. Brandon reported that he went there with Celeste. When he got there, Brandon said someone was ‘walking around’ and someone was in the woods. Brandon said, ‘And I was an idiot and desk popped into the ground.’”
Officer Johnson said that he knew the term “desk pop” to mean shooting a firearm into the ground.
“I clarified with Brandon, Brandon, asking if he shot into the ground and what he shot with,” Officer Johnson said. “Brandon said ‘yes I did’ and he used a .40 caliber Smith and Wesson handgun. Brandon said the firearm was inside the apartment and he had a License to Carry.”
Officer Johnson then asked Boyle why he shot at the ground.
“Brandon said that ‘Someone was around and they were driving around, someone showed up and was yelling at us.’ Brandon reported that Jess told him someone had also been banging on her window,” Officer Johnson said. Later adding, “Brandon told me that he shot his firearm as a warning shot.”
Officer Johnson added that while he was speaking with Boyle, he noticed that Boyle was slurring his words, had bloodshot eyes, and an odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his breath.
Officer Johnson said that while he was speaking with Boyle, Officer Ebbeling spoke with his girlfriend, Celeste.
“Celeste told Officer Ebbeling that Jessica Mason called her in a panic, reporting someone was in her yard trying to break into her residence,” Officer Johnson said. “Celeste and Brandon drove over to Jessica’s residence and while in the backyard of 1184 School Street, Celeste said a person in the backyard of 11 Perryville Road was yelling towards Jessica’s residence. A verbal altercation ensued with the two groups yelling back and forth. Celeste denied having a taser but stated she had an application on her phone that ‘makes noises.’ When Officer Ebbeling advised Celeste that a taser had been seen within the residence, she finally admitted to having the taser with her during the altercation. Officer Ebbeling then asked Celeste who had a gun, to which she responded ‘he did,’ stating that Brandon had a handgun with him during the incident.”
According to Officer Johnson, Celeste told Officer Ebbeling that Boyle didn’t shoot the gun at anyone, but instead shot it at the ground next to him.
“This was reported to have happened in the fenced in backyard area of 1184 School Street,” Officer Johnson said. “After speaking with all parties involved, Officers had probable cause to place Brandon under arrest. Brandon was subsequently taken into custody without incident. He was transported to the Webster Police Department, where he was booked per department policy and afforded all applicable rights.”
Brandon Boyle was charged with the following:
- Discharging a Firearm Within 500 Feet of a Dwelling/Building – “On September 2, 2025, Brandon Boyle did, in fact, discharge a firearm within 500 feet of numerous dwellings and buildings. Brandon was standing in the backyard of a residence when he discharged his firearm,” Officer Johnson said.
- Assault with a Dangerous Weapon (Handgun) – “On September 2, 2025, Brandon Boyle did, in fact, fire a handgun during an altercation, which placed the victim in fear,” Officer Johnson said. “Two victims reported that they thought Brandon had shot at them during the incident, prompting them to speed off in their vehicle.”
“A search warrant will be completed of the apartment where Brandon was located at,” Officer Johnson said. “Pending the conclusion of the search warrant, more charges may be filed at a later time.”
Boyle was arraigned in Dudley District Court on September 2, 2025. Following his arraignment, he was released on $500 cash bail under the condition that he stay away from and not contact the victim, surrender his firearms, and submit to alcohol screens.
Boyle’s next court date is a pretrial hearing scheduled for Oct. 8, 2025.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in September, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
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