LEOMINSTER — On Wednesday, June 3, 2026, the owner of Gaucho Market, a grocery store that sells cuts of meat and sausages at 285 Central Street, called 911 to report that a meat vendor came into the store and confronted him over money he claimed the owner allegedly owed him.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed Statement of Facts of Officer Tanner Jakola and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
According to police, the meat vendor was identified as Melquisedeque Viegavital, 37, of Lincoln, Rhode Island.
“Melquisedeque pushed the victim and armed himself with a knife and hammer that were on a nearby counter while still in the victim’s personal space,” Officer Jakola said. “The victim reached for his cellphone and Melquisedeque took it away before he could call police.”
Officer Jakola said the victim managed to get away from Viegavital and ran to the front of the store, where he picked up the landline phone, and called 911.
“Melquisedeque followed, grabbed the phone from the victim, hung up, and climbed on the front counter top,” Officer Jakola said. Adding, “The victim noted the front counter top was now ‘wobbly’ due to Melquisedeque’s actions.”
Melquisedeque Viegavital, 37, of Lincoln, Rhode Island, was charged with the following:
- Assault & Battery to Collect Loan
- Assault with a Dangerous Weapon (knife)
- Witness/Juror/Police/Court Official, Intimidate (two counts)
- Vandalize Property
Viegavital was arraigned in Leominster District Court on June 3, 2026. Following his arraignment, Viegavital was released on $1,000 cash bail under the condition that he stay away from Gaucho Market and not contact the victim.
Viegavital then attended a pretrial hearing on June 30, 2026. His next court date is a compliance and election hearing scheduled for July 14, 2026.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in June, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.
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