LEOMINSTER — On Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2025, Leominster Police Officers Braden Carlson, Jason Labell, and Jonathan Ramos were dispatched to the Hannaford Supermarket located at 927 Merriam Avenue following a report of a male shoplifting.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Braden Carlson and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“Dispatch advised responding units that the male was still there and in the office with loss prevention. They also informed us the male did not have an ID but was being cooperative,” Officer Carlson said. “Upon our arrival we advised Officer Ramos to stay in his patrol car so we could confirm the man’s identity. We then entered the store and were met by the store’s Asset Protection Coordinator, Tim [last name redacted]. [Tim] stated that he witnessed the suspect, later identified as Matthew Andrews, concealing items underneath his jacket and leaving the store passing all points of sale.”
According to police, Matthew J. Andrews, 51, is homeless in Manchester, New Hampshire.
“[Tim] told us that Mr. Andrews made his way outside when his cart locked and flipped,” Officer Carlson said.
Officer Carlson was also informed that the supermarket has a “gatekeeping” sensor on the doors.
“When unscanned merchandise is sensed the wheels on the cart automatically lock,” Officer Carlson said. “Mr. Andrews, feeling the wheels lock, then dragged the cart for roughly 10 feet before the cart flipped over onto its side. At this point, asset protection caught up with him and had him come back to the office with them.”
Officer Carlson stated that an asset protection employee, identified as Stephanie [last name redacted], provided police with a receipt listing miscellaneous unpaid items totaling $72.99.
“Following this, Mr. Andrews provided us with his name, DOB [date of birth], and his social security number. He also informed us that he was currently homeless and did not have a cellphone,” Officer Carlson said. “We then radioed Officer Ramos to confirm Mr. Andrews’
identity. Officer Ramos radioed that Mr. Andrews had active warrants.”
Officer Carlson stated that Officer Ramos then joined them inside, where they confirmed that Andrews’ Social Security number matched the one listed on the warrant. However, since they still did not have a positive photo ID, his identity could not be fully confirmed.
“[Stephanie] then began to review Hannaford’s paperwork with Mr. Andrews,” Officer Carlson said. “She informed him that he was being trespassed from all Hannaford locations indefinitely. Mr. Andrews asked how long the trespass would be and she informed him it was forever. Mr. Andrews understood. I logged the trespass into the Leominster police database.”
Officer Carlson then exited the asset protection office and radioed dispatch to double check the social security number on the warrant, which was confirmed as a match.
“Both matched,” Officer Carlson said. “Mr. Andrews also had his dog with him. We radioed to dispatch that we were going to have an arrest, and we were going to need animal control to respond for the dog.”
Officer Carlson then told Andrews to stand up because he was under arrest for shoplifting.
“Mr. Andrews complied with our orders. He stood up and placed his hands behind his back. I then handcuffed Mr. Andrews and checked the cuffs for proper fit and tightness before double locking them,” Officer Carlson said. “Officer LaBell instructed Officer Ramos to stay on scene and wait for animal control to arrive for the dog. Officer LaBell and I escorted Mr. Andrews to our patrol vehicle. I pat frisked Mr. Andrews and found a butane torch lighter and a napkin in his right pants pocket, we then placed him in the cruiser.”
Andrews was then transported to the Leominster Police Department for booking.
“At booking we confirmed his identity and that he had one warrant out of Massachusetts,” Officer Carlson said. “Upon arrival at the station, I called [Tim] to ask for the store’s surveillance footage. I was able to speak with [Stephanie] who informed me she would be emailing me the surveillance footage…Because Mr. Andrews informed us he was homeless, I will be contacting our outreach team to try and coordinate with Mr. Andrews about any help we can provide in terms of housing. I have sent our outreach team an email.”
Officer Carlson stated that at 10:05 p.m., Stephanie emailed the video surveillance footage showing Andrews attempting to leave Hannaford Supermarket with the stolen merchandise.
In addition to the outstanding warrant, Matthew J. Andrews was arrested and charged with the following:
- Shoplifting by Asportation
Andrews was arraigned in Leominster District Court on Oct. 29, 2025. During his arraignment, he pleaded guilty to the charge of shoplifting by asportation and was fined $100 by Judge Mark Noonan.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in October, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
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