WEBSTER — On Friday, Aug. 29, 2025, at approximately 5:00 p.m., Webster Police Officer Nicholas Caruso was in the parking lot of 59 East Main Street monitoring traffic, when he observed a vehicle with Massachusetts plates heading west on East Main Street.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Nicholas Caruso and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“I noted nothing wrong with the vehicle or its operation,” Officer Caruso said. “The passenger glared at me in an odd manner as the vehicle passed. I had made eye contact with dozens of operators and passengers in the beginning of this shift, but his eye contact was different. I later described it to co-workers as ‘awkward eye contact.’”
Officer Caruso said he then queried the vehicle and the results indicated that it was registered to a woman.
“The passenger was male so I did not believe her to be the passenger,” Officer Caruso said. “I researched [the woman] in Webster police’s in-house database and located a report written by Officer Francheska Cedeno in 2024. It was an offense report which listed [her] as a suspect in a domestic assault. The victim in the case was Mr. Preston Jackson.”
Officer Caruso said he then queried Preston Jackson in the Criminal Justice Information Systems (CJIS) database.
“The license photo of Mr. Jackson appeared to be the man who had glared at me,” Officer Caruso said.
“I observed Mr. Jackson had an active warrant for his arrest. I also reviewed Mr. Jackson’s Board of Probation record and saw Mr. Jackson had been convicted of several crimes involving a firearm in 2017 and had been sentenced to 3-5 years. This conviction would make Mr. Jackson a felon and unable to obtain or maintain a License to Carry in Massachusetts.”
According to police, Preston M. Jackson, 41, is a resident of Lincoln Street in Webster, MA.
Officer Caruso said he later read through Jackson’s Board of Probation (BOP) record and found approximately 34 firearms related charges, including the following:
- Carrying a Firearm without a License
- Possession of High-Capacity Firearm
- Possession High-Capacity Magazine
- Possession of a Firearm with a Defaced Serial Number by a Felon
- Possession of a Firearm while in the Commission of Felony
- Discharging a Firearm within 500 feet of Dwelling
“Mr. Jackson also had multiple charges for kidnapping, assault with a dangerous weapon, restraining order violations, intimidation of a witness, and trafficking fentanyl,” Officer Caruso said. Adding, “I observed the listed address for [the woman] and Mr. Preston to be [# redacted, street redacted] in the Town of Webster.”
Officer Caruso said he drove to Jackson’s residence on Lincoln Street, which he described as a multifamily dwelling.
“It had a driveway on the right side of the building with parking spots in the rear,” Officer Caruso recounted. “As I passed the home, I looked into the backyard and did not observe Mr. Preston or the vehicle I observed him travelling in.”
Officer Caruso said he left the area and returned a short time later to find the vehicle he observed earlier parked in the rear of the home.
“I also observed a passenger side vehicle door was ajar and a man matching Mr. Jackson’s description standing outside of it,” Officer Caruso said. “I radioed my position and the current situation to Webster dispatch. Several other officers stated they would arrive to be my backup.”
Officer Caruso said that he was later joined by Sergeant Robert Larochelle, Officer Thomas Motyka, and Officer Nicholas Trinque.
“I drove down the driveway and confirmed the man standing outside of the vehicle was the passenger I had seen earlier, which had matched Mr. Jackson’s license photo. The man appeared to be removing items from the vehicle,” Officer Caruso said. “I said something to the effect of, ‘Mr. Preston Jackson?’”
The man answered in the affirmative as he placed a backpack and brown paper bag into the rear passenger side of the vehicle.
“I then said something to the effect of: I have a warrant for your arrest,” Officer Caruso said. “Mr. Jackson was handcuffed behind his back.”
Officer Caruso said Jackson didn’t ask for any of his property from his vehicle upon being arrested.
“The majority of arrests made while property is present, a prisoner will ask for a phone to arrange for bail, the services of an attorney, or notify a loved-one of their arrest,” Officer Caruso explained. “They often want their wallet or purse, which often contains personal items, sensitive documents, or currency. Prisoners who take medication, unsure of the length of their stay in jail, will ask to take medication with them. In a recent arrest I allowed a prisoner to take his Domino’s pizza for his dinner after he asked.”
Officer Caruso said that after placing Jackson in the back of his cruiser, he confirmed Jackson’s date of birth and verified the warrant for his arrest.
“I explained why the warrant had been issued. I did this while attempting to keep an eye on the bag as the rear vehicle door was open,” Officer Caruso said. “Sergeant Larochelle arrived shortly after Mr. Jackson was placed in my cruiser. I informed Sergeant Larochelle that Mr. Jackson had a bag in his possession when I first encountered him.”
Officer Caruso told Sergeant Larochelle that he was going to search Jackson’s bag since the bag was within Jackson’s immediate reach and control when the arrest was made.
“A search of the bag Mr. Jackson had in his possession, contained the following: approximately nine prescription bottles with Mr. Jackson’s name on it, a wallet containing Mr. Jackson’s Massachusetts ID, Mr. Jackson’s health insurance card, a striker-fired pistol (polymer 80 frame with a Glock slide attached), an extended magazine filled with ammunition, a loose .40 caliber round, a red and black rag, and a bottle of CLP (gun cleaning oil).”
Officer Caruso said there wasn’t a serial number on the frame of the pistol.
“Also, in the bag was a 22-round Glock factory magazine,” Officer Caruso said. “There were 18 rounds of .40 caliber ammunition found in the magazine. The loose round also found in Mr. Jackson’s bag was also a .40 caliber round. Present in Mr. Jackson’s bag was a bottle of CLP (which stands for Clean, Lubricate, Preserve) was present with the firearm as well as a black and red rag, which is likely used for maintenance.”
Officer Caruso walked to the rear of the cruiser and read Jackson his Miranda warning from a card he carries on his person.
“Mr. Jackson was unable to produce his license to carry firearms. Further, a search revealed his license to carry had previously been revoked in 2016,” Officer Caruso said.
Officer Caruso said he then spoke with the owner of the vehicle, the woman known to Jackson.
“[She] was reminded that she was not in custody and free to leave at any time,” Officer Caruso said. “I asked [her] if the firearm in Mr. Jackson’s bag belonged to her or if she had ever personally assembled her own firearm. [The woman] did not answer. [She] did state she had a License to Carry.”
Sergeant Larochelle later asked the woman if the firearm Officer Caruso located belonged to her and she replied stating it was not her firearm.
“[She] said Mr. Jackson had schizophrenia and several other conditions,” Officer Caruso said. “[The woman] stated to Sergeant Larochelle that she was concerned for Mr. Jackson’s mental health and Mr. Jackson required his medication. Mr. Jackson’s medications were located in his bag. Had a search incident to arrest not been conducted, the firearm would have inevitably been discovered in the process of obtaining Mr. Jackson’s medications.”
Preston Jackson was transported to the Webster Police Department where he was booked on the following:
- Straight Warrant out of Dudley District Court
- Possess Large Capacity Firearm
- Carry Firearm without License
- Possess Large Capacity Feeding Device
- Possess Ammunition without FID Card
Jackson was arraigned in Dudley District Court on Sept. 2, 2025. During his arraignment, Judge Andrew Abdella allowed the Commonwealth’s motion for pretrial detention based on dangerousness, ordering Jackson held without bail. The judge also ordered a mental health evaluation to determine competency and criminal responsibility.
Jackson attended a competency hearing on Sept. 30, 2025, during which the judge heard testimony from a doctor and, based on the doctor’s findings, ordered Jackson to be sent to a state mental health facility for further evaluation. Jackson’s competency hearing was continued to Oct. 20, 2025.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in August, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
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