Police Officer Ronald Tarentino, Jr.

Ronald Tarentino, Jr.

Police Officer Ronald Tarentino was shot and killed while conducting a traffic stop on Rochdale Street, near Zabelle Avenue, at approximately 12:30 am.

An occupant of the vehicle opened fire on him during as he approached the car, striking him multiple times. He was transported to UMass Memorial Medical Center where he succumbed to his wounds.

The subject who shot him fled the scene, but was later located at an Oxford apartment building. As officers searched the apartment he was believed to have been hiding in they discovered a secret passage into an adjoining apartment. When the officers made entry into the second apartment the subject exited a closet and opened fire, wounding one Massachusetts State Police tactical team trooper before being killed.

Officer Tarentino had served with the Auburn Police Department for two years and had previously served with the Leicester Police Department for seven years. He is survived by his wife and three children.

In May 2018, Swanson Road Bridge over Mass Pike was renamed Officer Ronald Tarentino Memorial Bridge.