GARDNER — On Tuesday, November 4, 2025, Gardner Police Officers Bryant Powlowski, Officer Anthony Webb, and Officer Chris Black, were dispatched to 377 Elm Street for a noise complaint.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Bryant Powlowski and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
Officer Powlowski said the reporting party called to report that a white Honda Accord was in the back parking lot playing loud music.
Upon arrival, Officer Powlowski observed a white Honda Accord with two female parties inside the vehicle and one male party standing outside. They were later identified as Ryleigh Ackles, Ariana Fernandez, and Marcus Lopez.
According to police, Ryleigh Payton-Marie Ackles, 24, is a resident of Martinsville, Virginia; Marcus Ivan Lopez, 23, is a resident of Gardner, Massachusetts; and Ariana Yanellyliz Fernandez, 21, is a resident of Gardner, Massachusetts. Ackles and Lopez are married.
“Upon making contact, Marcus started walking away to avoid being identified,” Officer Powlowski said. “Officer Black told Marcus to stop walking away, and I walked around a vehicle to cut off his path and make contact with him. I told him to stop walking. We needed to talk to him. At this time, Marcus turned his face toward me and said, ‘What!’ When Marcus turned toward me, I immediately recognized him from prior calls for service and his very distinct throat tattoo.”
Officer Powlowski said he knew Lopez had an active warrant out for his arrest for OUI second offense.
Officer Powlowski told Marcus not to run and grabbed his arm, but Marcus broke free and ran, and a foot chase ensued.
“I began chasing him, calling in his description to all available units,” Officer Powlowski said. “I was telling Marcus to stop and that he was under arrest during the chase. At this time, Marcus cut right, jumped off a 12-foot wall, and ran behind Taylor True Value Rental.”
Officer Powlowski then got into his cruiser and drove to the entrance of the Salvation Army to locate Lopez.
At around this time, Officer Marcus Guerreiro, Officer John Smith, Sergeant John Braun, and Lieutenant Matt Arsenault arrived on scene to assist.
After the other officers arrived on scene, Officer Powlowski deployed a drone to look for Lopez in the surrounding area, as there was no sign of him nearby.
“During my flight, I did not observe any heat signatures, but I heard Sergeant Braun, who was standing next to me, say we had one coming out of the Salvation Army parking lot,” Officer Powlowski said. “I looked up from my screen and saw Marcus walking in the parking lot. At this time, Sergeant Braun and I told Marcus to show us his hands and get on the ground. Marcus complied, putting his hands over his head before lying down on the ground. Marcus was told, while we approached him, to place his hands behind his back. Marcus complied and placed his hands behind his back. Marcus was placed in handcuffs, double-locked, and his pockets were searched for any contraband before transport to the station.”
Officer Powlowski said that while he and Sergeant Braun were taking Lopez into custody, Ackles and Fernandez came through the woods from 377 Elm Street to the Salvation Army parking lot, screaming and causing a disturbance.
“Both females were told to back up and stop creating a disturbance. Neither complied with the lawful commands given to them, and continued yelling and acting in a disorderly manner, and interfering with the taking of Marcus into custody,” Officer Powlowski said. “Ariana and Ryleigh kept trying to get in between the officers on the scene and Marcus.”
After repeatedly telling Ackles and Fernandez to back up, Officer Powlowski took them into custody on charges of disorderly conduct and disturbing the peace.
The women were both handcuffed and placed in the back of separate cruisers so they could be transported to the Gardner Police Department for booking.
Officer Powlowski added that Lopez was “stood up” and escorted to the back of a cruiser for transport to the Gardner Police Station as well.
Ryleigh Payton-Marie Ackles, 24, of Martinsville, Virginia, was arrested and charged with:
- Disorderly Conduct
- Disturbing the Peace
Ariana Yanellyliz Fernandez, 21, of Gardner, MA, was arrested and charged with:
- Disorderly Conduct
- Disturbing the Peace
Marcus Ivan Lopez, 23, of Gardner, MA, was arrested and charged with:
- Warrant Arrest
- Resist Arrest
- Disorderly Conduct
After all parties were taken into custody, they were transported to the Gardner Police Department for booking.
“Upon arrival at the Gardner police department, EMS was called for Marcus due to the injuries he caused to his face while fleeing from his arrest,” Officer Powlowski said. “Marcus was transported to Heywood Memorial Hospital for his injuries, and both female parties were booked without incident and placed in cells two and three to await bail.”
Their arraignments were scheduled for Nov. 5, 2025, in Gardner District Court.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place earlier this month, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
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