EAST BRIDGEWATER, Mass. — An East Bridgewater man is facing charges for allegedly pulling out a gun on someone for not wearing a mask.
But he claims that never happened.
The 30-year-old victim from Abington walked into Bridgewater Liquors Friday telling his story to anyone who would listen.
“He says, ‘I go in Walgreens and a man is flipping out he said because I didn’t have a mask on and I said I have a medical condition I don’t need to have a mask on,' and then he started swearing and stuff,” said Bridgewater Liquors owner Kevin Prosper. “Then he said, ‘[The] dude pulled out a gun acting like he’s going to shoot me. If you’re going to shoot me go ahead and shoot me.‘”
The unmasked man told police Todd Goulston, 59, started arguing with him inside the Walgreens for not wearing a mask. He says the argument spilled in the parking lot where Goulston pulled a handgun from under his seat and pointed it at him. Police say a manager called 911 but Goulston drove off before they arrived. No one was hurt.
“You don’t always know the stressors people are going through,” said Chief of Police Bridgewater Police Department Christopher D. Delmonte. “Maybe this person has some difficult stressors in the life that we don’t know about. Still, that does not justify allegedly pulling a firearm on someone else based on a complaint about a mask.”
Goulston called our newsroom after this story first aired and told us he has stage 4 lung cancer in both lungs. His family tells Boston 25 that, despite the claims, he never had a gun in the car and this was only an argument.
Boston 25 took that claim to the chief who says that, between the witness and victim statements, they had enough to arrest Goulston at his East Bridgewater home. Now it will be up to the courts to decide.
"If he is convicted of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon that is a lifetime disqualifier and he could lose his license," said Delmonte.
Police seized his license to carry, more guns in his home and a rifle in his trunk which the family says was meant for a planned hunting trip.
Between both sides, the courts will have plenty to sort through.
“I just can’t believe someone would pull a gun on you because you don’t have a mask on,” said Prosper. “Small town of Bridgewater you never know what’s going to happen.”
Police say there is no video of the gun, only video inside Walgreens they couldn't release.
Follow Wale on Facebook: WaleAliyuTV Twitter: @WaleAliyu or Instagram: WaleAliyuTV
Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/7QOJU3BNCJERBNKJC5LWTBYFLU.png)
