Market Basket Robbery Suspect Bagged after Chelmsford Robbery Monday Night

By LIZ TAURASI (Patch Staff)

Tewksbury Police have released details on the arrest of man accused of robbing the Stadium Plaza Market basket Monday. He was arrested Monday night following a similar robbery in Chelmsford.

On Monday, Oct. 5 at approximately 11:45 a.m. Tewksbury Police responded to a report of an Armed Robbery which had just occurred at the Market Basket, which is located at 10 Main St.

Officers arrived on scene within minutes, and spoke with the clerk at the store who told police a heavy set, white male with a red beard approached the Courtesy Booth and handed her a hand written note demanding $200 dollars. She then asked the suspect what the note said, and the man said to her “ $200 dollars or I will Pull it,” she then fearing for her life, handed him the money.

This suspect immediately left the store, and store officials notified Tewksbury Police to respond. Tewksbury Police Officers immediately arrived and set up a perimeter and began to search for the suspect with every available officer, including the K-9 Officer and Detectives.

Tewksbury Detectives were able to immediately view surveillance video from Market Basket and observed the suspect getting into a red vehicle to make his escape. Detectives were able to collected a still photo of suspect from this video surveillance. Detectives then put this photo out immediately to all of our police officers, and posted it to our social media sites.

After approximately an hour of investigation, detectives collected valuable information from several callers who observed the picture posted on our social media and shared all the information they had. The suspect was then identified as Jason O’Doherty whose last known residence is 20 North Maple St., Woburn, Ma. Jason is 30 years old.

Tewksbury Police then sent out a BOLO (be on the lookout) for O’Doherty’s and a description of the vehicle. O’Doherty was apprehended in Lowell after he committed a similar robbery in Chelmsford.

When Tewksbury detectives arrived to assist in Lowell, O’Doherty was wearing the same clothes that he had on earlier in the day and detectives continued to collected other evidence relating to his earlier robbery at the Tewksbury Market Basket.

O’Doherty was arraigned in Lowell District Court this morning for both robberies committed in Chelmsford and Tewksbury.

The Tewksbury Police department will be charging Mr. O’Doherty with a violation of MGL Chapter 265 Section 17a Armed Robbery.