Leominster man arrested for threatening girlfriend’s father with knife during driveway dispute

LEOMISTER — On Sunday, March 29, 2026, Officer Caulin Salvi of the Leominster Police Department said he responded to 26 Arlington Street following a report of a disturbance in the driveway.

(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Personnel Narrative of Officer Caulin Salvi and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)

“Dispatch told me four individuals were arguing in the driveway, a knife had been reported,” Officer Salvi said.

Officers Marjus Zylyftari and Garrett Hardy also responded to the scene.

“Please note, the Leominster Police Department has responded to 26 Arlington Street for numerous disturbances recently, including domestic assaults. One resident is a known offender that has often been reported to be armed with knives or firearms,” Officer Salvi said. Later adding, “When I arrived, Daisy [last name redacted] and Jaton Milliard were in the driveway, I have responded to this address before and am aware Jaton often has his own knives on him.”

Officer Salvi said he approached Jaton, who was standing next to the right tire of a black Jeep SUV.  

“I frisked him for weapons and while doing so was notified that Holvin [last name redacted] was confirmed to be involved, and Jaton believed that Holvin was armed with a firearm,” Officer Salvi said. “Jaton could not describe to me what this firearm looked like, I began moving everyone in the driveway away from the house until more units arrived.”

According to police, Jaton Z. Milliard, 22, is a resident of Leominster, MA.

“Jaton stated to officers that he had been confronted by Holvin in the driveway and that Holvin had flashed a knife at him. Jaton was unable to describe what was done with the knife or whether Holvin had made any statement threatening him with it,” Officer Salvi said. Later adding, “Daisy [last name redacted] had initially seemed distressed and out of breath, she was stating that she was ‘sick of him’ (later determined to be referring to Jaton). Daisy kept referring to Jaton as the problem with assisting officers, medical attention was requested for Daisy and she was evaluated for a suspected panic attack.”

Officer Salvi stated that Daisy was Holven’s mother and the primary resident of the apartment at 26 Arlington, where Holven also resided. Jaton had been a frequently invited guest at the apartment because he was dating Holven’s daughter.

Officer Salvi said that, due to Jaton’s statements, he and other responding officers used the back staircase to approach the apartment with “extreme caution.”

Officers Zylyftari and Salvi entered the apartment first and located Holvin’s daughter, Lailanni, who directed the officers to where her father was.

“Holvin approached us and followed commands,” Officer Salvi said. “I checked him for weapons and found none. He did have numerous dark, hard objects consistent with the size of some small firearms, including a portable battery pack, cell phone, and a large, densely filled dark wallet.”

Holvin told Officer Salvi that when he returned from grocery shopping with Lailanni, they both saw Jaton near Lailanni’s car, the black Jeep. Daisy then accused Jaton of taking things from the car, and all four parties began arguing with each other.

“Lailanni made her way inside, and later observed the remainder of the argument from the third-floor kitchen window,” Officer Salvi said. “Holvin stated that he was upset with how Jaton treats Lailanni (Jaton has been dating Lailanni for approximately a year) and was also suspicious of what Jaton was doing in the car.”

Holvin and Jaton then remained the only individuals arguing, while Daisy stayed outside and called 911.

Holvin stated that Jaton then tried to provoke him into a physical altercation, and that Holvin responded with insults.

“Holvin stated that Jaton then took a knife out and continued provoking him, causing Holvin to retreat back into the apartment,” Officer Salvi said. Adding, “(Holvin retreating was captured partially by the footage a neighbor provided).”

Officer Salvi said a resident of 24 Arlington Street also called 911 to report the argument, and that the reporting party’s wife caught part of the incident on video.

“[The reporting party’s] wife provided me with a video of the end of the argument,” Officer Salvi said. “Holvin appears to retreat up to their apartment after Jaton begins yelling and advancing up the driveway with his right hand down at his waist.”

Officer Salvi said he could not determine what Jaton said because of the quality of the video.

“[The reporting party’s] daughter was seen momentarily in the foreground with the argument occurring just outside the window behind her,” Officer Salvi said. “[The reporting party] stated to me that when they heard the yelling, they suspected it was their neighbors immediately as [the reporting party] stated that they have become used to the frequent police responses for their neighbors. [The reporting party] and her wife did not see either person with a weapon from their vantage point.”

Officer Salvi said Lailanni, who was interviewed separately from Holven, stated that she saw Jaton unfold a silver knife and hold it down at his waist as he continued provoking her father into fighting him.

“She believed it was the knife she stored in her car’s center console,” Officer Salvi said. “I asked Lailanni if she would be able to confirm if the knife was still in her car. She did not feel comfortable coming outside with Jaton still present, so I was given directions on how to find the knife.”

Officer Salvi stated that Lailanni provided a description of the knife that included a small “white” symbol, which appeared to refer to the flag stamp later found on the knife.

“Jaton had been found on scene next to the Jeep, the video showed that he had been near the Jeep during the argument, and Lailanni was reporting that it was her knife from the Jeep Jaton had unfolded and held,” Officer Salvi explained. Adding, “I determined that Jaton had committed assault with a dangerous weapon and went to place him under arrest with the other officers waiting outside with him. As I came outside, Officer [Noah] DeCesare provided me with the knife that I had been sent to locate. Jaton told Officer DeCesare that he had put it on the front passenger seat.”

Officer Salvi reported that Lailanni said the knife was hers, showed him where she usually kept it, and identified it as the one she had seen Jaton holding. The knife was then secured as evidence.

“I informed Jaton he was under arrest for assault with a dangerous weapon, I placed him in handcuffs, checked them for tightness, and double locked them,” Officer Salvi said.

Officer DeCesare then transported Jaton to the station for booking.

Jaton’s bail was set at $1,500 cash.

Jaton was arraigned in Leominster District Court on March 30, 2026.

Jaton’s next court date is a pretrial hearing scheduled for April 30, 2026.

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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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