Worcester man arrested for punching Leominster cop during welfare check on his girlfriend

LEOMINSTER – On Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026, Leominster Police Officer Robert Connors was dispatched to Arlington Street for a wellbeing check on a woman who had reportedly been arguing with her boyfriend.

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

“Dispatched advised me that a family member was concerned, as [she] was with her boyfriend, Ray Pena, and the two had been arguing,” Officer Connors said.

Officer Connors said dispatch also informed him that the family member had access to the location of the woman’s phone, which indicated that she was on Arlington Street, although an exact address could not be determined.

“Dispatch was able to give me Ray’s description, stating that he was a Hispanic male in a blue hoodie and green shorts,” Officer Connors said, adding that dispatch also informed him that Pena had three active warrants out for his arrest.

According to police, Ray A. Pena, 23, is a resident of Worcester, MA.

Officer Connors said that when initially arrived on Arlington Street, he was unable to find Pena or his girlfriend.

“I asked dispatch if the family member had any further information on [the woman’s] location, and they were able to find out that the two may be inside a blue Mazda. At this time, I went back to check the area for a blue Mazda,” Officer Connors said.

When he was back on Arlington Street, Officer Connors said he observed Officers Raul Valladares and Marjus Zylyftari pull up behind a blue Mazda parked at 92 Arlington Street.

The officers approached the vehicle and observed a man matching Pena’s description in the front passenger seat.

“At this time, the male party matching Ray’s description opened the door,” Officer Connors said.

Officer Connors said he asked the man to identify himself, and the man stated that his name was Joshua Martinez and that his date of birth was Aug. 16, 2004.

“I provided dispatch with this information, and dispatch advised me shortly afterwards that there was no Joshua Martinez with that date of birth,” Officer Connors said.

Officer Connors said he asked the man for identification, and the man stated that it was inside the residence at 92 Arlington Street and asked if he could go get it.

Officer Connors then asked if someone else could retrieve his identification, and the man stated that his girlfriend could do so. Shortly afterward, the woman came outside and began yelling at the officers, demanding to know who had called police.

“I asked [the woman] if she would be able to get the male party’s ID from inside the house, and she stated she didn’t know where it was,” Officer Connors said. “I asked the male party if he could remember where he put it, and he stated that he had lost his ID. I asked him again where the ID was, and he stated he had lost it and it was in the mail.”

Officer Connors then asked the man to provide his social security number and he said he didn’t know it.

“While I was speaking with the male party, [the woman] called him Ray,” Officer Connors said. “I asked him again if his name was Ray Pena, and he stated his full name was Joshua Ray Martinez.

Officer Connors said he asked the man his age, and the man stated that he was 24, contradicting his earlier claim that he was born on Aug. 16, 2004, which would have made him 22 years old.

“At this time, Officer Zylyftari came over and stated that the male party was indeed Ray Pena, and he had three warrants,” Officer Connors said. “I instructed Ray to step out of the vehicle and informed him that he was under arrest for the warrants.”

Officer Connors said Pena exited the vehicle, and as he attempted to place him in handcuffs, he felt Pena tense his arms and lean forward. Based on his training and experience, Officer Connors believed Pena was preparing to flee.

“Ray then attempted to run away from police, and Officer Valladares and I grabbed Ray’s arms,” Officer Connors explained. “Ray began to struggle with us, and at one point got his right arm free and punched me in the mouth.”

Officer Connors said Officer Benvissuto was also attempting to gain control of Pena, but Pena still had one hand free.

“Ray raised his hand as if he was squaring up to punch me again, and I punched Ray in the face with a closed fist three times,” Officer Connors said. “At this time, Officer Zylyftari deployed his taser, which did not properly connect with Ray. Ray continued to struggle before falling into the space between the open car door and the ground.”

 Once Pena was on the ground, Officer Connors said he propped himself up and continued to struggle with police.

As Pena continued to resist, Officer Connors said he pulled out his department issued baton as a display of force and told Pena to put his hands behind his back.

“Ray refused to put his hands behind his back but appeared to somewhat de-escalate at the display of my baton,” Officer Connors said.

Officer Connors said he attempted to use his baton as a pry bar to gain control of Pena’s right arm but was unable to do so because Pena repeatedly extended his arm before pulling it back toward his body. Officer Connors then put his baton away.

“With Officer Benvissuto’s help, I was able to gain compliance of Ray’s right arm, and Officer Benvissuto placed the arm into handcuffs,” Officer Connors said. “Once Ray was in handcuffs, officers were able to put him into the recovery position. Officer Benvissuto requested an ambulance respond to evaluate Ray.”

Officer Connors said that while waiting for the ambulance to arrive, Pena continued to scream at police.

“Eventually, other units arrived on scene and were able to sit Ray up, as he refused to sit up at first,” Officer Connors said. “Ray was then evaluated by the Leominster Fire Department and transported to the hospital with a police escort.”

While Pena was en route to the hospital, Officer Connors said he spoke with his girlfriend.

“[The woman] stated that her sister and her sister’s boyfriend reside at 92 Arlington Street, and that her sister’s boyfriend and Ray had gotten into a verbal argument,” Officer Connors said. “[The woman] stated that she and Ray had gone for a walk to cool off.”

Officer Connors said the woman denied that she and Pena had been arguing and stated that no physical altercation had occurred among anyone involved.

“[The woman] stated that she was aware that Ray had warrants, and she believed that’s why he lied to police about who he was,” Officer Connors said. “[The woman] asked if she could give me a change of clothes for Ray to change into as his were muddy.”

She then gave Officer Connors a clean outfit for Pena to change into at the police station. Officer Connors said he transported the clothing to the police station and gave it to the house officer to be placed with Pena’s property.

“Sergeant McKenna arrived on scene and photographed Ray’s injuries, my injuries, and Officer Valladares’ injuries,” Officer Connors added. “During the struggle, the blue Mazda also sustained scratches to the right-side rear passenger door, and my radio pouch on my department-issued vest was ripped.”

Pena was arraigned in Leominster District Court on Sept. 21, 2026. Following his arraignment, he was released on $1,500 cash bail.

Pena’s next court date is a pretrial hearing scheduled for Oct. 15, 2026.

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Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story took place in September, that’s because I had to file FOIA request(s) to obtain the court documents. FOIAs are time-consuming.

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