Arrest on separate charges results in capture of wanted New Bedford man after year-long investigation

An investigation spanning over a year has resulted in the arrest of a local man in custody on separate charges.

According to police, on November 10, 2024, members of the Hollis, New Hampshire Police Department responded to a local business to take a report of a trailer theft. A suspect in the theft was identified, and after a lengthy investigation the trailer was recovered in Wareham MA on March 4, 2025. At that time the original suspect was charged with possession of the stolen trailer pursuant to MA law. 

The recovery of the trailer helped further the theft investigation in Hollis. As a result, on April 9, 2025, an arrest warrant was issued for John Bastian, 43, of New Bedford MA. Members of the Hollis Police Department made attempts to work with Bastian to clear the warrant. These attempts were futile, as Bastian refused to cooperate. Multiple attempts to locate him were unsuccessful. 

In January of 2026, Bastian was arrested by the Sharon MA Police Department on unrelated charges. He was held in Massachusetts for several weeks before he could be extradited to New Hampshire.

On February 19, 2026, Hollis officers executed the arrest warrant at the Stoughton MA District Court. Bastian was taken into custody and transported to the Hollis Police Department for processing.

Bastian was ordered held on preventative detention and transported to the Hillsborough County House of Corrections pending arraignment at the 9th Circuit Court, Nashua District. 

The Hollis Police Department thanked the Wareham Police Department for their assistance in this investigation and the Sharon Police Department for locating Bastian.