Body of Man Missing Since October Found in Lake in Gardner

GARDENER – The Gardner Police Department discovered the body of an Acton man, missing since escaping Heywood Hospital in October, in Crystal Lake in Gardner during an aerial search pm Wednesday.

Authorities identified the man as Leonard Mercury, 27, of Acton. He was last seen leaving Heywood Hospital in Gardner on Oct. 31, 2025, at around 2 AM.

The Gardner Police Department conducted a search at the time of the missing person report, but did not locate him.

During the search on Wednesday, the Gardner Police Department used drones to search for Murcury. An image captured by a drone appeared to officers to be a human body floating in the Crystal Lake water.

The Massachusetts State Police dive team recovered the body a short time later.

The chief medical examiner will determine the cause of death. Massachusetts State Police Detectives, State Police Crime Scene Services, the Gardner Police Department, and the Westminster Police Department are investigating the case.

Since Mercury’s disappearance, the Gardner and Westminster police, the Massachusetts Environmental Police, and the Massachusetts State Police Dive Team, Special Emergency Response Team (SERT), Marine Unit, and K-9 Unit have contributed to the search.

Worcester Agrees to Pay Holden $35.5 Million Over 4 Years

WORCESTER  – The City of Worcester announced an agreement to pay $35.5 million to the Town of Holden over four years to end the long-standing dispute over sewage fees between the two municipalities.

According to City Manager Eric Batista’s office, Worcester will make the following payment to Holden:

April 1, 2026 – $10 million
July 1, 2026 – $10.5 million
July 1, 2027 – $5 million
July 1, 2028 – $5 million
July 1, 2029 – $5 million

As part of the agreement, Holden agreed to waive all interest accrued after February and throughout the course of the payment schedule. The city says that will save it $4.5 million.

Batista said that he believes exhausting all legal options was in the best interest of Worcester residents and that he is confident that this agreement, “is the best possible outcome.” He also said that he will “bring forward a report to Council that will detail the impact to ratepayers,” in the coming weeks.

The City of Worcester owes Holden over $35 million for what a jury decided was “unjust enrichment” in August 2022, after an eight-day trial. Holden filed the lawsuit in 2013, alleging that Holden paid overcharged fees for sewage treatment. The 2022 judgement in the case awarded Holden $14.6 million.

Worcester pursued overturning the case. In April 2023, a Worcester Superior Court judge upheld the jury’s verdict. The finalized judgement at this time, including costs and pre-judgement interest, was nearly $27 million.

The City of Worcester continued to pursue appeals and asked the Massachusetts Supreme Court to review the case while interest continued to accumulate. In February, the court declined the Worcester request for review of the case.

By then, accumulating interest pushed the amount due to Holden to over $35 million.

Laurel Street to Close, Closures of I-290 Scheduled

WORCESTER – Laurel Street in Worcester will close on Thursday, March 26, at 5 AM for MassDOT roadwork and phase one of the Laurel Street bridge project. The City of Worcester says it expects the street to reopen on Friday, April 3, at 7 AM.

Phase one of the Laurel Street bridge project will set new bridge beams. The city expects MassDOT to move a crane into the area to facilitate the work on Sunday night, March 29.

The city says no-parking signs will begin going up on Tuesday, March 24.

The work will also require lane closures on both sides of I-290 overnight on both Sunday, March 29, and Monday, March 30. All lanes are expected to reopen by 5 AM on both Monday and Tuesday.

The two left lanes of I-290 Eastbound will be closed overnight between Tuesday, March 31, and Thursday, April 2. Intermittent closures of all lanes on I-290 Eastbound are expected, but will be limited to between midnight and 5 AM.

22-Year-Old Westminster Man Dead After Officer-Involved Shooting

WESTMINSTER – The office of Worcester County District Attorney Joe Early Jr. announced on Tuesday, March 23, an investigation into a fatal officer-involved shooting in Westminster on Monday.

According to Early’s office, Westminster Police officers responded to a home on South Ashburnham Road to serve an arrest warrant on Monday, March 22, at around 4:45 PM. Officers made contact with the suspect inside the home.

Early’s office said that during the officer’s interaction with the 22-year-old Westminster resident, the man moved toward the officers while holding a large knife. Officers discharged their firearms and struck the individual.

After shooting the man, the officers provided medical aid.

EMS responded to the scene and transported the man to a local hospital, and later to a hospital in the Worcester area, where doctors pronounced him dead.

None of the responding officers sustained injuries during the incident. The officers involved were placed on administrative leave pending an investigation.

Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office and the Westminster Police Department are conducting the ongoing investigation.

City Officials Respond to Racist Rhetoric Aimed at South High Athletes

WORCESTER – A series of social media posts and replies using bigoted tropes and racist language directed at the girls basketball team at South High Community School has drawn a response from City Councilor Khrystian King, Mayor Joe Petty, and Superintendent of Worcester Public Schools Brian Allen.

Those who made the comments were responding to a post about a recent South High girls basketball game against Andover High School.

King released a statement on Monday, March 16, which included some posts that drew his response. A selection of those posts appear on this page.

In his statement, King said that the racism and bullying directed toward the student athletes “is a youth wellness issue, and we as a community must stand up
for them and protect them.”

“These young women are not just competing at the highest levels of high school basketball. They are setting an example for younger students across Worcester of all identities and backgrounds, including my own daughter and her classmates, who are watching and learning from them.

That should be the story. Instead, the conversation has been overshadowed by threats, racism, and bullying directed at these young women. That behavior has no place in high school athletics or in any community that claims to value its young people.”
– City Councilor At-Large Khrystian King

King also said that “Reports of threats invoking immigration enforcement toward student athletes during games, combined with the wave of racist commentary circulating online about these young women cannot be ignored.

On Thursday, March 19, Petty, who is also the chairperson of the Worcester School Committee, and Allen issued a joint statement in response to the posts, saying they “overshadowed the girls’ opportunity to celebrate their accomplishments and included hateful, racial comments directed toward South High’s players by adults and individuals not affiliated with either district.”

“The Worcester community stands united in denouncing racism in all its forms. We are deeply troubled by the recent rhetoric.

Hate and discrimination have no place in our society, and certainly not toward our youth. All human beings deserve to be treated with respect and decency. We emphasize that adults must serve as role models for kindness, respect, and appropriate behavior. School staff continue to offer support and hold ongoing discussions with affected students, while serving as role models.”
– Mayor Joe Petty and Superintendent of Worcester Public Schools Brian Allen

Petty and Allen also said that the Worcester Public Schools and Worcester School Committee “remain steadfast in their commitment to ensuring safe, welcoming environments where all students feel valued and respected.”

7 Worcester Youths Campaign Against Underage Alcohol Access

WORCESTER – Seven Worcester youth volunteers recently completed a “sticker shock” awareness campaign designed to deter adults from purchasing alcohol for minors and to reinforce the importance of ID checks by retailers.

The volunteers placed over 250 visible warning stickers directly on alcohol products as real-time reminders that providing alcohol to those under 21 years old is a crime that can result in legal, financial, and health consequences. They placed over 250 stickers across three participating retailers whose customer base spans multiple city districts: East Side Discount Liquors (129 Shrewsbury St.), Highland Liquors (121 Highland St.), and Mass Liquors (392 Chandler St.).

The volunteers also led working with retailers as part of the campaign.

Sticker shock campaigns are evidence-based and shown to interrupt risky decision-making, reduce social access to alcohol, and promote shared responsibility for youth safety and well-being.

The campaign was part of an initiative by the Worcester Division of Public Health (DPH) in partnership with the Division of Youth Opportunities (DYO) and the Worcester Police Department (WPD).

Sobriety Checkpoint in Worcester County March 20 to March 21

WORCESTER – The Massachusetts State Police announced there will be a sobriety checkpoint in Worcester County from Friday, March 20, to Saturday, March 21.

Police are required to announce the dates and county in which sobriety checkpoints will appear. The checkpoint will appear on a public way within Worcester County.

According to the state police, the purpose of sobriety checkpoints is “to further educate the motoring public and strengthen the public’s awareness of the need to detect and remove motorists who operate under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs from our roadways.”

A grant from the Office of Grants and Research, a division of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety, funded the operation.

New State Loan Program Supports Accessory Dwelling Unit Construction

BOSTON – Governor Maura Healey’s office announced the launch of a state loan program for homeowners across Massachusetts to add a second unit to their homes. The statewide accessory dwelling unit (ADU) loan program provides borrowing through a second mortgage of up to $250,000 to enable homeowners to add a second unit to their homes.

An ADU is a small residential living space located on the same lot as a single-family home.

The Affordable Homes Act, which Healey signed into law on Aug. 6, 2024, created the right for any single-family homeowner in Massachusetts to add an ADU attached to their home or a detached unit on the same lot.

The program supports the construction of new ADUs. The loan will carry a 5.25 percent interest rate with a 20-year term. Those with an income over 135 percent of area median income, around $165,345 in Worcester County, will not qualify.

Applicants must secure local permits and be ready to move into construction when applying.

“Expanding housing options for Massachusetts residents is one of our administration’s top priorities, and accessory dwelling units are one of the most practical ways to create housing and drive down costs in communities across our state,” said Governor Maura Healey. “This program will open the door for families to create new homes, support loved ones and strengthen neighborhoods across Massachusetts.”

Applications are now open at the MassHousing website.

Worcester City Council Approves $25 Million Loan Order to Pay Holden

WORCESTER – The Worcester City Council approved a request by City Manager Eric Batista to borrow $25.5 million to pay the Town of Holden during the council’s meeting on Tuesday, March 17.

In another item on the council’s agenda, Batista requested the council approve a $10 million transfer from an account for reserve funds for sewer service to an account for sewer maintenance.

In a letter to the city council, Batista says the transfer will allow him “the ability to complete discussions with the Town of Holden to address the final judgement rendered against the City of Worcester.”

Holden Town Manager Peter Lukes told Spectrum News earlier this month that “The time for settlement negotiations comes BEFORE the final judgment (and appeals), not after.” He also said that “The courts have spoken. Their decision(s) ARE the settled outcome.”

The attorney representing Holden, Christopher Petrini, told Spectrum that “every day payment is delayed an additional $8723.96 of post-judgment interest is added to the amount due.”

The City of Worcester owes Holden over $35 million for what a jury decided was “unjust enrichment” in August 2022, after an eight-day trial. Holden filed the lawsuit in 2013, alleging that Holden paid overcharged fees for sewage treatment. The 2022 judgement in the case awarded Holden $14.6 million.

Worcester pursued overturning the case. In April 2023, a Worcester Superior Court judge upheld the jury’s verdict. The finalized judgement at this time, including costs and pre-judgement interest, was nearly $27 million.

The City of Worcester continued to pursue appeals and asked the Massachusetts Supreme Court to review the case while interest continued to accumulate. In February, the court declined the Worcester request for review of the case.

By then, accumulating interest pushed the amount due to Holden to over $35 million.

Batista’s letter to the city council concludes with: “I will continue to keep the City Council apprised as terms are finalized and the impact on the Sewer Fund and rate payers is determined.”

Uxbridge Man Sentenced for Child Sex Abuse Content

WORCESTER – A federal judge in Worcester sentenced a local man for possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on Friday, March 13.

Scott Morrill, 52, of Uxbridge, received a sentence of 10 years in prison followed by 15 years of supervised release. Morrill pleaded guilty in October 2025 after being arrested and charged in April 2025.

According to federal prosecutors, Morrill used a Google account to store hundreds of images of CSAM. Google identified the use of its services to store the material and notified the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

The resulting investigation discovered the content within Morrill’s Google account and on a computer in his home.

At the time of the crime, Morrill remained on supervised release for a 2013 conviction for distribution of child pornography, for which a judge sentenced him to five years in prison.