Crime & Safety

Woman Charged With Animal Cruelty After Worcester Carjacking

The woman beat a man with a phone and stole his SUV from a parking lot near the Worcester Public Market Saturday afternoon, police said.

A car thief also stole a dog after an incident Saturday at a Canal District parking lot.
A car thief also stole a dog after an incident Saturday at a Canal District parking lot. (Neal McNamara/Patch)

WORCESTER, MA — A Brookfield woman is facing multiple charges — including animal cruelty — following a weekend carjacking in the Canal District, according to police.

Around 3 p.m. Saturday, the 39-year-old woman got into an SUV parked at the lot next to the Worcester Public Market and began beating the driver with her cell phone, police said. The 67-year-old man got out of the vehicle and the woman drove off — with the owner's dog in the backseat.

The woman stopped to let the dog out, and a passerby found it along Vernon Street.

Just before 8 a.m. Monday, Worcester police got a Lojack alert that the stolen SUV was parked along Eastern Avenue. Police found the 39-year-old woman and a 40-year-old Worcester man sleeping inside the SUV.

The woman was arrested on charges of carjacking, two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, assault on a person over age 60 and animal cruelty. The man was charged with receiving stolen property valued at over $1,200.

The dog and the owner were reunited after the SUV was stolen, police said.