Iraq War vet in more trouble after Candia arrest

Christopher J. Wentworth at Rochester District Court on Monday. (Harrison Thorp photo)

ROCHESTER - The Iraq War veteran who allegedly went berserk striking several men in the Milton Road Hannaford’s parking lot earlier this month got into more trouble three days later in Candia, N.H., as police say he was caught speeding in a stolen vehicle and led them on a high-speed chase into Deerfield, N.H., before being captured.
Candia Police Sgt. Scott Gallagher said that around 11:15 p.m. on Oct. 18 Christopher J. Wentworth, 43, of 82 Chestnut Hill Road, Rochester, led police on a high speed chase after being caught speeding in a stolen Ford F-350. Gallagher said Wentworth turned his headlights off during the dangerous nighttime pursuit.
Wentworth was taken into custody after ditching the vehicle and attempting to flee on foot.

He was charged with felony Receiving Stolen Property, misdemeanor Disobeying a Police Officer and speeding and remains behind bars today at Rockingham County Jail in Brentwood, N.H.
Wentworth, who served as a semi-trailer truck driver in Iraq delivering ordnance to field troops, appeared at Rochester District Court on Monday for his probable cause hearing on the Hannaford charges. The hearing was continued.
His bail, which on Oct. 16 in Dover District Court was altered from $10,000 to $10,000 personal recognizance upon acceptance by Strafford County Community Corrections pending a mental health evaluation, reverted to $10,000 cash upon his Candia arrest.
On Monday, however, it was reverted once again to the previous personal recognizance pending acceptance again by SCCC and a mental health exam.
Dressed in an orange jumpsuit supplied by Rockingham County Jail and sitting with prisoners from the Strafford County Jail, Wentworth appeared calm and unemotional in handcuffs and foot manacles as he conferred briefly with a prosecutor from the County Attorneys Office.
A representative from the Veterans Affairs office was also there and conferred privately with the prosecutor.
Gallagher noted Wentworth’s bail stemming from the latest charges in Candia was $5.000 cash. Today, a $15,000 cash bail was still in effect at Rockingham County Jail where Wentworth remains incarcerated.
It was back on the morning of Oct. 15 that Wentworth allegedly began terrorizing folks in the Hannaford parking lot at the Lilac Mall.
According to police, Wentworth first approached a male victim who was seated in his vehicle and began a verbal confrontation. Police say Wentworth then took out a black “crow bar” type object that was approximately two-feet long and struck the victim in the chest. As the victim was trying to get back into his vehicle the suspect struck the victim in the leg multiple times with the object causing bruising, police said.
The suspect then approached another male who was unloading a delivery truck at the front of the Hannaford’s and waved the blunt object at this victim in a threatening manner.
Police said the suspect then hit the delivery truck victim in the head with a large bag of popcorn, which Wentworth actually went into the supermarket to get.
According to police, the suspect then turned and walked toward two older males who were putting groceries in the trunk of their vehicle and began swinging the wooden club at one of the males. One of the men apparently retrieved a handgun from the vehicle, police said.
Wentworth is said to have then crossed Milton Road and attempted to get inside the VIP Auto Parts Store, but been forced by bystanders back outside where he was taken into custody as police arrived soon after.
Wentworth was charged with four felony counts of second-degree assault, three counts of felony criminal threatening and one count of simple assault as a result of the Rochester incident.

Wentworth served with the National Guard in Iraq. According to his mother, who didn’t want to be identified when she spoke to The Lebanon Voice on Oct. 16, he suffers from PTSD and has been on disability for a little over a year. His mother also said the “crowbar” type weapon he used in the Rochester attacks was a small stick.