FBI Arrests Townsend Man in Armed Bank Robbery Case

TOWNSEND — Federal agents arrested a Townsend man this week in connection with two armed bank robberies, while Town Hall opened nomination papers for a fall special election and confirmed a run of upcoming water and aggregation work.

TOWN HALL

Nomination papers are now available for a town special election, the Town of Townsend announced this week. Residents were also reminded that Townsend has three fall elections on the calendar this year: September 1, October 6, and November 3.

The town flagged a water main flushing operation that took place June 30, and an aggregation sweep is scheduled for July 13 as part of the town's Community Electric Aggregation program. Town Hall also reminded residents that municipal offices are closed on Fridays through the end of August, and that the deadline to renew the 2026-2027 curbside trash and recycling program fell on July 10.

ELSEWHERE IN THE NEWS

"Mass. man accused of carrying out armed bank robberies arrested by FBI" — MassLive reported that Joseph Sawyer, 52, of Townsend, was arrested Wednesday by the FBI in connection with two armed bank robberies. Federal authorities said the robberies occurred June 12, 2026, according to the FBI's Boston field office (read it at https://www.masslive.com/news/2026/07/mass-man-accused-of-carrying-out-armed-bank-robberies-arrested-by-fbi.html).

"Massachusetts Man Arrested for Bank Robbery" — the FBI's own release confirms the arrest of the 52-year-old Townsend resident in relation to the two armed robberies, according to the FBI (read it at https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/boston/news/massachusetts-man-arrested-for-bank-robbery).

COMING UP

The next aggregation sweep for Townsend is set for Monday, July 13. Town Hall remains closed on Fridays through the end of August, affecting resident access to municipal offices on those days.