GARDNER — On Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, at approximately 8:53 p.m., Gardner Police Officers Nathan Golisano and Bryant Powlowski were dispatched to the Walmart located at 677 Timpany Boulevard following a report of a shoplifting incident.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Nathan Golisano and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
When the officers arrived on scene, they were escorted inside by a loss prevention associate, Kyle, who informed them what he had observed.
“He told us that the main entrance greeter, Robert [last name redacted], observed a male, who we later identified as Nicholas Miller, grabbing some items up near the front of the store and place them inside an empty plastic Walmart bag that he grabbed from the register area without checking out,” Officer Golisano said.
According to police, Nicholas E. Miller, 31, is homeless in Gardner, MA.
Robert said that he saw Miller place the items in the bag and then quickly move away from the area. He added that Miller seemed nervous when staff walked near him or looked at him.
“He stated he observed Nicholas go somewhere inside the store, where he would not be seen for some time before appearing again and repeating the behavior,” Officer Golisano said. “Upon seeing the suspicious behavior and believing him to be potentially stealing the items, he notified loss prevention and spoke with Kyle.”
Officer Golisano said that, after he was notified, Kyle began watching Miller and following what he was doing and saw Miller take more items from the front of the store, pass the checkout area without paying, and conceal the items in the plastic Walmart bag.
Kyle said he and other staff members kept an eye on Miller and saw him enter the men’s bathroom in the back of the store, where he remained for about an hour. It was at this time that Kyle called Gardner police.
“Having cause to believe Nicholas had stolen the items due to the suspicious behavior and taking items from the checkout area without paying for them, this was when he notified the Gardner Police Department,” Officer Golisano said. “He informed us that the Nicholas was wearing grey sweatpants and a blue sweatshirt.”
The officers then followed Kyle to the bathroom where Miller was last seen and entered.
“We saw a male standing in the stall but not near the toilet,” Officer Golisano said, adding that he and Officer Powlowski knocked on the stall door and a man matching the description opened it.
“This male was confirmed to be Nicholas Miller after we identified ourselves and informed him he was under investigation for shoplifting,” Officer Golisano said. “In the back right corner of the stall on the ground in a plastic Walmart bag were two bottles of Mountain Dew (one empty) and an unopened package of Sour Patch Kids next to the bag.”
The officers then escorted Miller to the loss prevention office to review the surveillance footage.
“Footage of the area he was in when taking the items was currently unavailable due to the cameras being down, but a nearby camera recorded him in the described area with the same clothing and plastic bag leaving the register area,” Officer Golisano said. “It was also reported to us that they believed that Nicholas may have taken chips and eaten those also, but they could not recover the items as they did not know where he may have put them.”
Officer Golisano said he asked Miller if he had eaten chips from the store earlier, and Miller replied that he was unsure.
“I told him that it’s odd that he doesn’t remember if he took chips and if he ate them or not, but he did not respond to this,” Officer Golisano said. “While speaking with Kyle in the office, we were advised that Nicholas was reported missing out of Westminster by his father. Dispatch informed the father that Nicholas was located.”
Officer Golisano said that Kyle told police he wanted to press charges against Miller for the incident.
Miller was then placed under arrest for shoplifting and transported back to the Gardner Police Department for booking.
Officer Golisano said that Miller was booked without issue, advised of his right to a phone call, and then placed in a holding cell.
“While inventorying his belongings, it was discovered that Nicholas did not have any cash or debit/credit cards on him to pay for the merchandise he had taken and consumed,” Officer Golisano said. “Nicholas’ father offered to post bail for his son, but Nicholas declined wishing to be bailed, stating he would rather stay until court opened on Monday.”
Nicholas E. Miller, 31, homeless in Gardner, was arrested and charged with:
- Shoplifting by Concealing Merchandise
Miller was arraigned in Gardner District Court on Dec. 15, 2025. During his arraignment, Judge Mark Goldstein decriminalized and then dismissed the charge of shoplifting by concealing merchandise. The case was then closed.
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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