Wakefield Man Bit Officer, Assaulted Security Guard, DA Says

BOSTON, MA — A Wakefield man is facing charges that he assaulted a security guard, threatened to blow up a store, and bit a police officer, according to prosecutors.

Police responded to the Primark store in Downtown Crossing in Boston at 4:42 p.m. Saturday. Police saw a man, later identified as Williams Rodriguez-Juarez, 24, causing a disturbance and yelling at employees inside the store, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office.

Before police arrived, Rodriguez-Juarez was inside the loading dock, an area restricted to employees only. When store personnel asked him to leave, Rodriguez-Juarez began yelling, screaming, and making inappropriate sexual statements to employees and customers, prosecutors said.

Rodriguez-Juarez then became aggressive and tried to leave with store merchandise while threatening to "blow this place up," according to prosecutors.

Rodriguez-Juarez then assaulted a security guard by placing the guard’s hands behind his back and yelling “you need to arrest him.” Officers gave Rodriguez-Juarez verbal commands to release the security guard and Rodriguez-Juarez immediately resisted arrest by kicking and pushing officers, prosecutors said.

When he was being arrested, Rodriguez-Juarez turned his head and bit an officer on his left upper arm, causing the skin to tear and bleed. After several minutes of Rodriguez-Juarez kicking, biting, and punching officers, more officers arrived and were able to subdue Rodriguez-Juarez, according to prosecutors.

The officer who sustained the bite wound was evaluated by emergency medical services.

Rodriguez-Juarez was charged with unarmed robbery, making a bomb or hijack threat, assault and battery on a police officer, strangulation or suffocation, trespassing, resisting arrest, and three counts of assault with a dangerous weapon (shod foot).

Bail was set at $500 and Rodriguez-Juarez was ordered by a judge to stay away from Downtown Crossing. He is due back in court Aug. 12.