Crime & Safety

Wilmington Man Accused Of Using Excavator As A Weapon

Police say Kevin MacDonald, 56, of Wilmington, was "uncooperative" and "pretended to be unconscious" as he was arrested Saturday.

MacDonald has run for office in Wilmington in six of the eight past town elections.​ ​​
MacDonald has run for office in Wilmington in six of the eight past town elections.​ ​​ (Matt Schooley/Patch File Photo)

WILMINGTON, MA —A Wilmington man was arrested and charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, and threatening to commit a crime Saturday after threatening a Wilmington police officer and construction workers with the bucket of an excavator. Police say Kevin MacDonald, 56, of Wilmington, swung the bucket of the machine and refused to exit the vehicle as the police officer tried to settle a dispute between MacDonald and the workers, who were on a job on a property adjacent to MacDonald's on Andover Street.

"If Mr. MacDonald had applied more pressure with his excavator, the [construction worker] could have fallen over the steep cliff on the other side," the responding Wilmington police officer wrote in his report. According to the Wilmington Apple, which first reported this story, that officer called for backup. When MacDonald eventually left the excavator to talk to the second officer, he was arrested.

The Apple describes MacDonald as a "well-known Wilmington resident" who has run for office in six of the eight past town elections. The police report goes on to say MacDonald pretended to be unconscious when he was brought to the police station, then claimed to not know where he was. Because he was "very uncooperative," police could not finish booking MacDonald.

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For more on this story, see the Wilmington Apple.


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