WINCHENDON — On Saturday, January 3, 2026, at approximately 1:45 p.m., Officer Justin Smith of the Winchendon Police Department was on patrol in the area of Spring and Central streets when he observed a gray Honda Civic with Massachusetts plates traveling toward the Blair Square intersection on Central Street.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Justin Smith and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“Detective Caleb Similia had informed me a week prior he saw a man named Bryan Arsenault, son of the Honda’s registered owner…operating this vehicle in town with a revoked license,” Officer Smith said.
Officer Smith said he pulled into a nearby parking lot and ran Arsenault’s driver’s license number through department records via an RMV query on his cruiser’s mobile data terminal (MDT).
According to police, Bryan M. Arsenault, 40, is a resident of Winchendon, MA.
“I confirmed Bryan’s license was still revoked and familiarized myself with Bryan’s appearance via his license photo,” Officer Smith said. “I recognized Bryan as the operator of the Honda as it passed me on Central Street. I caught up to the Honda on Spring Street near Spring Circle, where I initiated a traffic stop.”
Officer Smith said he approached the Honda and informed Arsenault of the reason for the stop.
“Bryan knew his license was revoked and said it has been revoked for years. Bryan provided me a MA [Massachusetts] ID card,” Officer Smith said. “I asked Bryan to step out of the Honda, which he did without incident, and placed him under arrest for operating on a revoked license.”
Officer Smith handcuffed Arsenault and escorted him to the rear of his cruiser, where he conducted a search for weapons before securing Arsenault in the rear prisoner compartment. Officer Smith then contacted dispatch and requested that Brooks Auto Services be notified for a tow.
“During the exit order and arrest, I saw a glass bubble pipe with white residue in the driver’s armrest pocket in plain view. There was burnt tan-brown residue on the bubble part of the pipe,” Officer Smith said. “I know from training and experience that glass pipes such as these are used for smoking substances such as methamphetamine (meth).”
Officer Smith that that while Arsenault was seated in the rear of his cruiser, he advised him of his Miranda rights from a card he carries on his person.
“Bryan understood his rights and chose to speak with me,” Officer Smith said. “I asked Bryan when the last time he used meth was. Bryan told me yesterday,” Officer Smith said. “I asked Bryan if there was any meth in the Honda, and he told me there was meth in the black box in the driver door pocket. Bryan told me that was all he had in the Honda. I told Bryan I appreciated, and would note, his honesty.”
Officer Smith said he searched the Honda pursuant to the motor vehicle warrant exception and located the black box in the driver’s door pocket.
“The box had a sticker of an American flag and a handgun which matched the same sticker on the back of Bryan’s cell phone,” Officer Smith said. “I opened the box and found a small glass container which contained about 0.25-0.5g of a white/clear crystalline substance which I knew through training and experience was consistent with crystal methamphetamine.”
Officer Smith reported that the box also contained a white powdery residue and a cut straw with white powdery residue on it. He also observed two butane torches, one on the driver’s seat and the other in the center console.
“I also located an empty plastic corner baggie with a white powdery residue in the center console,” Officer Smith said. “From training and experience, plastic corner baggies, cut from the corners of plastic sealable sandwich bags, are commonly used in street-level narcotics packaging and distribution. Cut straws are commonly used for intranasal consumption (‘snorting’) of narcotics, and butane torches are commonly used for smoking narcotics. The glass bubble pipe, the black box (plus its contents), and the empty baggie were all seized.”
Officer Smith said he inventoried the contents of the Honda pursuant to department policy before Brooks Auto Services towed it from the scene.
“I transported Bryan to the station where he was booked, searched, his property inventoried, and afforded all applicable rights before being placed in cell #3 at 2:37 p.m.,” Officer Smith said.
Bryan M. Arsenault, 40, of Winchendon, was charged with the following:
- Possess Class B Drug (methamphetamine)
- Operate Motor Vehicle with Revoked License as HTO (Habitual Traffic Offender)
“The suspected crystal methamphetamine in the small glass container was entered into…and will be sent to the UMass Drug Lab for testing and certification,” Officer Smith said. “The glass pipe, black box, and cut straw were destroyed at the station. A certified copy of Bryan’s license status was requested from the RMV by dispatch.”
Arsenault’s bail was set at $100. After it was posted, he was released at 4:41 p.m.
Arsenault was arraigned in Winchendon District Court on Jan. 5, 2026. Following his arraignment he was released on bail. He then attended a pretrial hearing on Feb. 18, 2026.
Arsenault’s next court date is a discovery compliance and election hearing scheduled for April 7, 2026.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the arrest in this story took place in January, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
To learn more about News Link Live’s unique business model, please read the following:
An online business model that could replace local newspapers
Why The Leominster Champion Failed
The Medium is the Message by Marshall McCLuhan
The Ego and the ID by Sigmund Freud
