Leominster man arrested for stealing $500.85 worth of Carhartt clothing from Tractor Supply

LEOMINSTER – On Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026, at approximately 6:25 p.m., Leominster Police Officer Avery Benvissuto was dispatched to Tractor Supply at 235 New Lancaster Road following a report of suspicious activity.

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

Leominster Police Officer Mackenson Adescar also responded to the scene.

“Tractor Supply staff reported that a male party had tried to return approximately 40 items and was now in the changing room for approximately 15-20 minutes,” Officer Benvissuto said. “Upon arrival, the individual in question, Peter Tata, was standing outside of the store with three bags full of clothing items.”

According to police, Peter V. Tata, 38, is a resident of Leominster, MA.

“I went into the store to briefly speak with staff regarding what had transpired prior to my arrival,” Officer Benvissuto said.

Officer Benvissuto said the Tractor Supply manager who reported the incident told him that Tata came into the store with bags full of Carhartt t-shirts and Carhartt snapback trucker hats and asked to return the items without a receipt.

The manager said a co-worker processed about $50 worth of returns, but would not accept any more returns. She said Tata then walked around the Carhartt section of the store and entered the changing room with multiple items of clothing, where he remained for an extended period of time.

“[The manager] showed me a theft detection device that had been located within the changing room after Mr. Tata exited,” Officer Benvissuto said.

The manager and her co-worker informed Officer Benvissuto that a large majority of their Carhartt apparel had theft detection devices located on each individual piece of clothing.

“I then went back out to speak with Mr. Tata who was standing by with Officer Adescar,” Officer Benvissuto said. “I asked Mr. Tata if I could look through his bags, to which he consented. I located a tan Carhartt vest that had a small hole ripped in it just below the left arm hole, consistent with where the theft device would be located.”

Officer Benvissuto returned to the store and asked the employee who had processed Tata’s initial returns to examine the items the officer had found in Tata’s bags.

“[The employee] confirmed that the tan vest as well as other clothing items in Mr. Tata’s bags were not the items that he had attempted to return/brought into the store and that it was property of Tractor Supply,” Officer Benvissuto said.

At this time, Officer Benvissuto informed Tata that he was under arrest, the officer then handcuffed him, double-locked the handcuffs and checked them for proper fit.

“While escorting Mr. Tata to Officer Adescar’s cruiser, a small floral tin fell to the ground from Mr. Tata’s person. Upon opening the tin, there was a small, ripped glassine bag with a white powdery substance within,” Officer Benvissuto said.

Officer Benvissuto said he informed Tata of his Miranda warnings from a card he carries on his person, and Tata stated he understood.

“I asked Mr. Tata what the substance within the container was, but he denied that the small tin was his,” Officer Benvissuto said. “Based on my training and experience, I believe this white powdery substance to be cocaine.”

Officer Adescar then transported Tata to the Leominster Police Department for booking.

“I then brought Mr. Tata’s three bags of clothing into the store to determine what items had been stolen today,” Officer Benvissuto said.

Officer Benvissuto said the employee confirmed that 15 items in Tata’s bags were property of Tractor Supply that Tata had not brought into the store to initially return; the total of these items was $500.85.

While sorting through the items, Officer Benvissuto said he found another gray, long-sleeved Carhartt shirt with its security tag removed.

“At this time, I also observed that two of the bags that Mr. Tata had in his possession still had price tags on them, one from TJ Maxx ($14.99) and one from Fringe ($32.99),” Officer Benvissuto said. “These bags and the remainder of the clothing items, which still had the tags on them, were seized as evidence for other potential shoplifting offenses.”

Officer Benvissuto said that after he returned to the Leominster Police Department, the white powdery substance was weighed and found to have a gross weight of 0.02 grams. The substance was then submitted for analysis. The remaining seized clothing items were entered into evidence and secured in evidence locker 013.

Officer Benvissuto said he reviewed Tata’s Massachusetts Board of Probation record (BOP) and found two prior guilty dispositions, one for third-offense shoplifting and the other for possession of a Class B substance.

Tata was arraigned in Leominster District Court on Oct. 6, 2026. Following his arraignment, he was released on $500 cash bail under the condition that he remain drug free, submit to drug testing and stay away from the Tractor Supply store.

On Oct. 20, Judge Mark Noonan granted the Commonwealth’s motion to revoke Tata’s bail and ordered him held in custody.

Tata’s next court date is a pretrial conference hearing scheduled for Nov. 12, 2026.

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

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