LEOMINSTER — On Friday, December 5, 2025, at approximately 1:24 p.m., Leominster Police Officer Avery Benvissuto was among several officers dispatched to The Mall at Whitney Field at 100 Commercial Road following a report of an older white male in a blue pickup truck brandishing a firearm after being asked why he was recording the reporting party.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Avery Benvissuto and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“Prior to my arrival, dispatch advised responding officers that the blue pickup truck was bearing MA PC [# redacted]; the registered owner, Larry Dufresne had an active LTC [license to carry] and three firearms registered to him,” Officer Benvissuto said.
According to police, Larry Dufresne, 68, is a resident of Leominster, MA.
When Officer Benvissuto arrived on scene, he said he observed Officer Caulin Salvi, Officer Jonathan Benoit, and Officer Bradon Carlson with Dufresne.
“Mr. Dufresne was detained at this time pending investigation; a pat frisk of Mr. Dufresne and his vehicle were conducted prior to my arrival,” Officer Benvissuto said, adding that police discovered a loaded Smith & Wesson semi-automatic pistol in a compartment attached to the truck’s center console, near the area adjacent to the driver’s right shin.
“Officer Salvi secured the firearm in his marked cruiser,” Officer Benvissuto said. “Without speaking with Mr. Dufresne, I went to speak with the reporting party, identified as Edson [last name redacted]. [Edson], an employee of NuPath Inc. (a company that works with intellectually disabled people), informed me that he and his fellow co-workers, Moses [last name redacted] and JuanJose [last name redacted], were attempting to get their group of people they were overseeing into their van to leave the mall following a fieldtrip. [Edson] stated that he and his fellow co-workers observed Mr. Dufresne recording them via his cellphone; the Nupath Inc. van and Mr. Dufresne’s truck were parked parallel to one another with Mr. Dufresne in the driver’s seat.”
Edson told Officer Benvissuto that he approached Dufresne’s vehicle to ask why he was recording them.
“Subsequently, Mr. Dufresne unraveled a firearm from a towel or shirt, holding it across his chest in his right hand as he opened the driver’s side door,” Officer Benvissuto said.
Edson said he immediately ran back to the NuPath Inc. van because he was afraid he may be shot.
“[Moses’] statements corroborate [Edson’s] statements; [JuanJose] stated that he was not able to observe much due to him being in the driver’s seat of the van,” Officer Benvissuto said. Adding, “Based on the totality of the circumstances, I determined there was probable cause to place Mr. Dufresne under arrest, pursuant to MGL c. 265 s. 15A — Assault with a Dangerous Weapon.”
Officer Benvissuto said Dufresne was placed under arrest by another responding officer and transported to the Leominster Police Department for booking.
“Upon returning to the station, I took custody of the firearm, magazine, and ammunition from Officer Salvi; these items were then photographed and logged as evidence by Detective [Dennis] Hatstat,” Officer Benvissuto said.
Officer Benvissuto said he was able to verify through the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) database, that the Smith & Wesson was registered to Dufresne.
“After reviewing the CCTV footage acquired from The Mall at Whitney Field, it appears that [Edson], [Moses], and [JuanJose] all approached Mr. Dufresne’s vehicle, they all then ran back to the NuPath Inc. van as Mr. Dufresne driver’s door opens, likely following the display of the firearm. [Moses] and [JuanJose] did not disclose any sightings of the firearm, [Edson] is the only victim at this time.”
Larry Dufresne, 68, of Leominster, was arrested and charged with:
- Assault with Dangerous Weapon
Dufresne was arraigned in Leominster District Court on Dec. 8, 2025. During Dufresne’s arraignment, a dangerousness hearing was held and he was found to be dangerous, but the court determined that conditions could be imposed to allow his release. The court set bail at $5,000 and ordered Dufresne to have no contact with Edson, to stay away from The Whitney Field Mall, and to surrender all firearms by 8 p.m. on Dec. 8, 2025.
Following his arraignment, Dufresne posted the $5,000 cash bail and he was released. His next court date is a pretrial conference hearing scheduled for Jan. 9, 2026.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the arrest in this story took place in December, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
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