Leominster man arrested for slashing romantic rival with machete outside Wendy’s

LEOMINSTER — On Monday, July 13, 2026, Leominster Police Officers Jonathan Ramos and Garrett Hardy were dispatched to the Wendy’s Restaurant on North Main Street following a report of an assault and battery.

(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from the printed personnel narrative of Officers Jonathan Ramos and Garrett Hardy and do not reflect any political perspective or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.) 

Officer Ramos said the caller reported that three men were involved and that the shirtless man had threatened another man with a knife.

“Upon arrival, there were two male parties located in the area of the Rail Trail at the intersection of Erdman Way,” Officer Ramos said. “These parties were later identified as Mr. Christopher Potter (shirtless) and Mr. Angel Pomales. Both parties were detained and pat-frisked, as I considered them armed (report of a knife) and dangerous, as there was a report of an assault. There was a knife located on Angel, but not on Christopher.”

Officer Ramos said he spoke with Angel, who said that he was there to take care of his wife, Catalina.

“Angel stated she was the one who caused this and that Chris was here to help him,” Officer Ramos said. “Angel further stated that Dylan, whom I know to be Dylan Richard based on prior interactions with him as a Leominster police officer, hit him up on the messenger and stated that he was coming after Angel. Angel clarified that he thought Dylan was coming over here to chill with Angel and to meet at the Wendy’s.”

According to police, Dylan Richard, 22, is homeless in Leominster, MA.

“Once at the Wendy’s, Angel stated that he was jumped by two people, Dylan and the driver,” Officer Ramos said. “Angel stated that it was a 2015 Honda Civic, color blue.”

Officer Ramos said Angel reported that Richard sucker punched him outside Wendy’s and then cut him.

“I inquired as to how Angel was cut, to which he specified a machete,” Officer Ramos said. “Angel did have a fresh injury to one of his hands.”

According to Officer Hardy, who said he witnessed Christopher and Angel walking outbound on the rail trail as he was responding to the scene, he spoke with Angel who informed him that after the physical altercation he attempted to reach inside the Honda to grab Dylan.

“Angel stated that when his hand entered the vehicle, Dylan had his machete in his hand,” Officer Hardy said.

Angel told Officer Hardy that the machete was black and had a red bandana wrapped around its handle.

“Angel stated that Dylan swung it at him and it struck his upper hand,” Officer Hardy said. “Angel stated after he was struck with the machete he went inside Wendy’s to have them call 911. I observed a cut mark on Angel’s hand that is consistent with getting slashed by a machete.”

Officer Ramos requested assistance from the Leominster Fire Department after Angel reported being cut with a machete, and police secured the scene at Wendy’s to search for evidence.

Officer Ramos then spoke with Christopher, who identified Angel as his brother.

“Christopher reported Dylan and his buddy Andrew came out of nowhere while they were in the patio area and began jumping Angel,” Officer Ramos said. “Christopher did not see Dylan’s machete tonight but has seen it in the past.”

Officer Ramos said that Officer Hardy informed him that Angel’s fiancé had cheated on him with Dylan.

“Angel declined medical attention for his hand, but was able to show me a picture of Dylan, who I was able to positively identify as Dylan Richard,” Officer Ramos said. “I finished speaking with the parties there and drove to the Wendy’s.”

When Officer Ramos arrived at Wendy’s, he documented several drops of blood outside one of the entrance doors to the restaurant.

“Wendy’s exterior cameras were not working; therefore, I was unable to obtain footage,” Officer Ramos said. “I subsequently drove to Moore Street to locate Dylan and Andrew. Please note, Dylan’s and Andrew’s location was unknown for about 20 to 30 minutes, allowing them time to hide the machete and align their version of events.”

Police subsequently responded to Moore Street to make contact with Dylan and Andrew.

“Gary [last name redacted], who resides at [# redacted] North Main Street, was able to call his son, Andrew [last name redacted], who returned to the residence without incident,” Officer Ramos said. “I asked Gary for consent to search his motor vehicle MA [# redacted] upon its return, which he did. Andrew and Dylan, upon coming to Moore Street, were immediately pat-frisked and detained, given the totality of the circumstances. No weapons were located on either party, and the involved weapon was not located.”

Officer Ramos said Andrew told him that Dylan reported that a man was trying to lure him to the trailhead and that he felt unsafe.

“Andrew came outside, and Dylan explained to him that the tent he was utilizing was all slashed up, which was owned by Gary,” Officer Ramos said. “Andrew explained they were driving by Wendy’s and confronted Angel about the tent. Andrew subsequently reported an altercation ensued between himself and Angel.”

Officer Ramos said Andrew reported that Dylan grabbed Angel but he did not see anyone throw punches or display weapons.

“I also spoke with Dylan after he was read his Miranda warnings and waived them,” Officer Ramos said. “Dylan explained that Angel had a knife and saw him reaching. Andrew came over to confront him, and Angel (Chino) backed up, reaching for his waistband.”

Officer Ramos said Dylan reported that Andrew threw the first punch to protect him and that he decided the confrontation was not worth pursuing after Angel entered Wendy’s.

“Dylan affirmed he never had a machete and did not observe any weapons,” Officer Ramos said. “In light of the facts and circumstance, I determined Dylan was in violation he was of MGL 265/15A(B) Assault and Battery with a Dangerous Weapon.”

Officer Ramos placed Dylan under arrest and he was transported to the Leominster Police Department for booking without incident.

Dylan was arraigned in Leominster District Court on July 14, 2026. Following his arraignment, he was released on $1,000 cash bail under the condition that he stay away from and not contact the victim.

Dylan’s next court date was a pretrial conference hearing scheduled for Aug. 13, 2026.

---

Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in July, 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