LEOMINSTER — On Saturday, March 28, 2026, Officer Michael Dingman of the Leominster Police Department was dispatched to the Walmart Supercenter on Jungle Road following a report of a trespass after notice incident involving a male, Miguel Bonaparte.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Michael Dingman for the incident and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“Miguel was trespassed back in 2024, and it is still active as of May 2026,” Officer Dingman said.
According to police, Miguel S. Bonaparte, 34, is homeless in Leominster, MA.
Officer Dingman stated that while he was en route to Walmart, dispatch notified him that Bonaparte had concealed merchandise in his backpack and then left the store heading toward New Lancaster Road.
“I arrived in the area and did not locate Miguel,” Officer Dingman said. Adding, “I have dealt with Miguel in the past for previous incidents.”
Officer Dingman drove to the front entrance of Walmart and spoke to a loss prevention associate, Travis, who told him that Bonaparte had taken off in the direction of Old Mill Road.
“I notified Officer [Marjus] Zylyftari, who was my backup on this call,” Officer Dingman said. “I located Miguel by the entrance to Liberty Commons. I stopped him and asked him if he was in Walmart today.”
Officer Dingman stated that Bonaparte said he was walking in the area and had not gone inside the store. Bonaparte also stated that he had not taken any merchandise from the store.
“I asked dispatch if they could confirm if Miguel stole items from Walmart,” Officer Dingman said, adding that dispatch advised him that Bonaparte had stolen merchandise, including beef jerky.
“I had Miguel open his backpack and located beef jerky bags that were unopened along with other food items that were unopened,” Officer Dingman said.
Officer Dingman handcuffed Bonaparte and then went back to Walmart where he met Travis, a loss prevention associate.
“Travis stated Miguel was inside the store today and stole merchandise,” Officer Dingman said. “He stated he was on the sales floor and viewed Miguel place beef jerky and canned goods in his bag. Miguel exited the store, passing all points of sale without making a purchase.”
Officer Dingman said Travis showed him the surveillance footage of Bonaparte entering the store at approximately 3:32 p.m. that day.
Officer Dingman stated that he opened Bonaparte’s bag at Walmart and found unopened food items belonging to the store, including two bags of beef jerky valued at $30.76, three cans of chili valued at $9.51, and three bags of Snickers valued at $23.64.
“The total of the stolen merchandise was $63.91,” Officer Dingman said. Later adding, “I gave those items back to Walmart…I radioed Officer Zylyftari that Miguel was under arrest at this time.”
Officer Dingman stated that after returning to the station and reviewing Bonaparte’s Board of Probation record, he found out that Bonaparte had three prior guilty convictions for shoplifting.
Miguel Bonaparte, 34, who is homeless in Leominster, was charged with the following:
- Shoplifting, 3rd Offense
- Trespassing After Notice
Bonaparte was arraigned in Leominster District Court on March 30, 2026. Following his arraignment, he was released on personal recognizance under the condition that he stay away from the Walmart on Jungle Road.
Bonaparte then attended a pretrial hearing on April 9, 2026. His next court date is a compliance and election hearing scheduled for May 7, 2026.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in March, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
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