Monday, June 1, 2026
To All,
On Sunday, May 31, 2026, members of the New Bedford Police were in the downtown area conducting routine patrols when a large fight broke out in front of the library. This was in part due to a large number of patrons that had exited Bento’s Bar and Grill, located adjacent to the library, and remaining in the area instead of departing and either going home or going elsewhere. Multiple New Bedford Police Officers were in the area, and as they were dealing with people who were fighting and being disorderly the crowd kept getting bigger, to the point where other New Bedford officers from different areas of the city were called to assist.
Upon their arrival they also began clearing out the crowds and dealing with the disturbances, but the crowd continued to grow. At this point, because the police on scene were outnumbered, the decision was made by one of the street supervisors to call for mutual aid to respond to the city to assist. Members of the Massachusetts State Police, Fairhaven Police Department, Dartmouth Police Department, and Acushnet Police Department arrived on scene within minutes to assist us as we continued to separate fights and move the crowd out of the area. After about thirty minutes or so we were able to regain some semblance of order and were able to clear out the downtown area without further issue. There were multiple arrests made because of the riotous and disorderly behaviors, and it should also be noted that police seized a firearm from one of the persons who was arrested during the incident. The firearm was located in the person’s waistband.
The purpose of this notice is to extend our thanks to all Troopers and Officers who responded to the scene and assisted us in regaining control of a chaotic situation. I would also personally like to commend all Troopers and Officers who responded and remained professional and conducted their duties appropriately. Situations like these serve as a reminder of the importance of having a fully staffed police department (we are not there yet but hopefully will be in the future), having the requisite number of officers assigned to each shift (not operating short-staffed on shifts especially during the warm summer months coming ahead), and the importance of maintaining the interagency cooperation ensuring that mutual aid is available if needed, which it most certainly was this evening.
Again, we thank all law enforcement agencies who responded to what could have potentially been a much more dangerous situation, and thankfully there were no serious injuries. Some of our officers had to go to St. Luke’s Hospital for decontamination from OC spray, but none were seriously injured, and we would also like to thank the staff at St. Luke’s Hospital for their support and assistance. Thank you also to our Communications Division for remaining calm during this situation and ensuring all communications between multiple agencies flowed smoothly. The professionalism shown by all involved in this situation, from officers to dispatchers, is truly appreciated.
With deepest gratitude and appreciation,
Sgt. Lorenzo Gonzalez III
NBPU President
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