Webster man arrested for assault charges

A Webster man was arrested on Sunday afternoon for assault charges after a foot pursuit on East Main Street.

According to Webster Police approximately 5:30pm the police department received a call reporting a fight at the Walgreens on East Main Street. Before Officers arrived, the caller reported that suspect had pulled out a handgun and threatened her boyfriend in front of the store and fled the area on foot towards the heavily populated Price Chopper strip mall parking lot.

Webster Officer Aaron Suss initially located the suspect, identified as Francisco Sanabria, of 118 Main Street, Webster near one of the lot’s businesses. Sanabria fled when approached and led officers on a brief foot chase through the busy parking lot until he was able to be tackeled by Officer Patrick Perry and Michael Lee.

Sanabria was combative when the officers tried to take him into custody, needing to be subdued with a taser. The firearm was not located on him or in the surrounding area after an initial search.

After Sanabria was arrested a man and his wife reported they witnessed the suspect pull the gun out and point it at the victim who was only a few feet away from them. The couple reported they were at the Walgreen’s Redbox trying to rent a movie and observed the incident.

After an investigation by Detective Gordon Wentworth Sanabria later gave a statement saying that the incident stemmed from an incident almost two weeks prior involving the victim insulting Sanabria’s girlfriend. Sanabria also reported that the handgun involved was actually a pellet gun which he buried in the woods between the CVS and Walgreens.

Officer Bruce Hamm and Suss were able to locate the buried gun, which turned out to be a pellet gun, after a search with Webster Police K9 "Radar". Sanabria was held at the Webster Police Department on $500.00 bail. He was arraigned Monday morning on charges of Assault by Means of a Dangerous Weapon, Assault, Resisting Arrest, Disorderly Person, and Disturbing the Peace.