Homicide Watch Boston

Authorities are investigating possible suspects linked to the the death of 20-year-old Brousseau Normil, who was killed last March.

According to police reports, Normil was shot in the stomach. His body was discovered in a 2013 Chevrolet Captiv at 3 p.m. on 47 Langdon Street.

Several search warrants were issued for records, forensic or electronic evidence that may be linked to the case, police reports show. The contents of each search warrant were not disclosed.

Released from the Boston Police Department on March 6, 2013:

About 3:00pm on Tuesday, March 5, 2013, officers from District B-2 (Roxbury) responded to a radio call for an unknown across from 47 Langdon Street.
On arrival, officers was met by Boston Fire and Boston EMS. Officers were informed there was a male victim that had been pronounced deceased inside a motor vehicle opposite above location. Boston Police Homicide Unit is actively investigating the facts and circumstances surrounding this incident. Anyone with information is asked to call the Homicide Unit at (617) 343-4470.

Police are continuing to investigate Boston’s third homicide of the year, where a Brockton father was shot at 996 Tremont Street Tuesday.

Ricky Knight, 34, was taken to Boston Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

Universal Hub reported that Knight was a barber.

Released from the Boston Police Department on Jan. 20, 2014:

UPDATE: Victim Identified in the Death Investigation at 996 Tremont Street
January 20, 2014
At about 5:57pm, on Tuesday, January 14, 2014, officers from District D-4 (South End) responded to a call for person shot in the area of 996 Tremont Street. On arrival, officers learned that the victim, a male in his thirties, had been transported from the scene in a personal vehicle. The victim, suffering from apparent gunshot wounds, was taken to the Boston Medical Center where he was later pronounced deceased. The victim has been identified as Ricky Knight, 34 years old, of Brockton.

The Boston Police Homicide Unit is actively investigating the facts and circumstances surrounding this incident. Anyone with information is asked to call the Homicide Unit at (617) 343-4470.

Community members who wish to provide information in an anonymous manner may do so by calling our CrimeStoppers Tip Line at 1-800-494-TIPS or by texting the word ‘TIP’ to CRIME (27463). The Boston Police Department stringently protects the identities of any community member who choose to aid or assist an investigation.

Kewon “Killer” Kelley is due in court May 6 on charges that he killed a Boston father at a house party on Woodruff Way last February.

According to court documents, Rayshawn Few, 27, attempted to calm a confrontation between his friends and a group of men who challenged their presence because they did not know them.

Kelley, 26, pulled a gun out and shot the father in the head and torso during the dispute, according to the Suffolk County district attorney’s office. Kelley was later found hiding in a bathroom shower inside a house on Elliot Street, an official told the Boston Globe.

Kelley is charged with 1st-degree murder and possessing a firearm without a license.

Witnesses told investigators that Kelley was not welcome at the party that night, according to the district attorney’s office. Witnesses were initially hesitant to cooperate with authorities in fear of retaliation by Kelley. One witness had relocated after the shooting.

Prosecutors filed a motion to protect the identities of the witnesses who feared retaliation by Kelley. District Attorney Dan Conley said that prior to this shooting, Kelley was in custody for a number of violent offenses, including a shooting in November 2007 that left one of his gang members a paraplegic. The district attorney’s office stated that Kelley was indicted on one count of intimidation of a witness for that 2007 case. Court documents and transcripts show that Kelley reached out to the gang member he shot and warned him that he knew where that victim and that victim’s family lived. Kelley told that victim to stop working with the government and not testify in court.

A man was killed Tuesday evening on Dorchester Avenue in what investigators believe was a hit-and-run collision, the Boston Police Department said.

Officer Nicole Grant said the victim’s identity is not being released at this time and police are still searching for the driver of the vehicle that hit him.

Around 8 p.m., officers responded to a call of an injured pedestrian near 1485 Dorchester Ave, according to a police statement.

When they arrived at the scene, the man was being treated by EMS. He was taken to Boston Medical Center, where he later died, the statement said.

Police said the car that struck the man may have been a late model Toyota Camry or Nissan Maxima. They asked that anyone with information on the accident call 1-800-494-TIPS.

The following is a Boston Police Statement on the death:

At about 8:04pm, on Tuesday, February 4, 2014, officers from District C-11 (Dorchester) responded to a radio call for a pedestrian struck in the area of 1485 Dorchester Avenue.

On arrival, officers observed the male victim receiving treatment by Boston Emergency Technicians.  The victim suffering from life threatening injuries was transported to Boston Medical Center, where he was later pronounced deceased.

Preliminary investigation suggests the operator of the motor vehicle (possibly a late model Toyota Camry or Nissan Maxima) did not stop after striking the victim. The suspect fled the area on Adams Street towards Park Street.

No further details are available at this time.

The Homicide Unit and Accident Reconstruction Team are actively investigating the facts and circumstances surrounding this incident. Anyone with information is encouraged to call detectives at (617) 343-4470.

 Community members wishing to assist this investigation anonymously can do so by calling the CrimeStoppers Tip Line at 1(800) 494-TIPS or by texting the word ‘TIP’ to CRIME (27463). The Boston Police Department will stringently guard and protect the identities of those who wish to help this investigation anonymously.

Boston police detectives on Thursday arrested a third suspect in last month’s fatal shooting of 25-year-old Romeo McCubbin, the Suffolk district attorney’s office said.

Javaine Watson, 23, pleaded innocent to the murder charge at his arraignment in Dorchester Municipal Court, just hours after his arrest. He was held without bail, said Jake Wark, a spokesman for the district attorney’s office.

Prosecutors allege that Watson and two other men, Omar Bonner, 26, and Omar Denton, 29, shot McCubbin around 1:45 p.m. on Dec. 14. McCubbin was sitting in his car on Havelock Street in Mattapan when he was attacked, Wark said.

Bonner and Denton were arrested shortly after the shooting and are currently being held without bail. Watson is scheduled to return to court Feb. 27.

A copy of Watson’s indictment has been added below.

The two men accused of fatally shooting 26-year-old Courtney Jackson at Dudley Station last February are due in court March 20.

MBTA surveillance cameras captured the images of Jamel Bannister, 23, and Brian Cooper, 25, interacting with Jackson, according to the Suffolk County district attorney’s office. The Boston Globe reports Cooper can be seen on the tape pulling out a firearm and shooting Jackson. Bannister can be seen keeping watch armed with his own handgun.

Officers who were working nearby quickly apprehended the two fleeing the scene, according to the Boston Police Department site. Jackson was taken to Boston Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

“This was a brazen attack at a busy transportation hub,” Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said in a press release. “Motive remains under investigation, but we struggle to comprehend what could inspire an incident like this, which killed one man and put so many others at risk.”

Cooper and Bannister both face murder and firearms charges. Police are also charging both as armed career criminals due to their history of convictions, according to the Suffolk County district attorney’s office. If both are convicted as armed career criminals, they would be sentenced to prison for a longer time.

Court documents allege that Bannister was dealing cocaine that day.

Released by the Suffolk County district attorney’s office on March 1, 2013:

Two Held in “Brazen” Fatal Shooting
BOSTON, March 1, 2013—Two men were ordered held without bail today following their arraignments for the shooting death of 26-year-old Courtney Jackson at the Dudley MBTA station last night, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.

JAMEL BANNISTER (D.O.B. 10/7/90) of Dorchester and BRIAN COOPER (D.O.B. 1/19/88) of Mattapan are both charged with murder and unlawful possession of a firearm in connection with the incident at about 9:50 last night.

Both men are additionally charged as armed career criminals in light of prior convictions, Bannister for drug and assault charges in 2009 and 2011 and Cooper for armed assault with intent to murder in 2007. Bannister is further charged with possession of a Class B substance.

In addition to withholding bail, Roxbury District Court Judge David Poole ordered both defendants to return to court on April 1.

“This was a brazen attack at a busy transportation hub,” Conley said. “Motive remains under investigation, but we struggle to comprehend what could inspire an incident like this, which killed one man put so many others at risk.”

Conley commended the rapid action of two Boston Police officers who were working a detail near the scene and apprehended the defendants moments after the shooting. He thanked MBTA Transit Police for their assistance as well, both at the scene and in developing “significant” video evidence from surveillance cameras at the station.

Bannister is represented by attorney James Greenberg and Cooper is represented by attorney John Tardiff.

Released by the Boston Police Department on March 1, 2013:

About 9:50 pm on Thursday, February 28th, 2013, officers from District B-2 (Roxbury) responded to a call for a person shot in the area 14 Zeigler Street (Dudley Square).
On arrival, officers observed an unidentified black male victim suffering from a gunshot wound. The victim was transported to the Boston Medical Center and was later pronounced deceased.
Minutes after the shooting, Officers Wilfredo Coriano and Domenic Columbo, while performing a privately paid detail in the area, observed two suspects running from the scene. Officers gave chase and with the assistance of Officers Brian Holmes and Kevin Plunkett and the Transit Police, the suspects were apprehended.
Officers also recovered two firearms. Cooper and Bannister have been arraigned in Roxbury District Court.
The department would like to recognize Officers Wilfredo Coriano, Domenic Columbo, Brian Holmes and Kevin Plunkett for their outstanding work regarding this incident.

Jamel Bannister, 22, of Dorchester is charged with Murder and Unlawful Possession of a Firearm, Armed Career Criminal and Possession (Class B)

Brian Cooper, 25, of Mattapan, is charged with Murder and Unlawful Possession of a Firearm and Armed Career Criminal.

Homicide detectives are actively investigating the facts and circumstances surrounding this incident. Anyone with information is encouraged to call detectives at (617) 343-4470.
Community members wishing to assist this investigation anonymously can do so by calling the CrimeStoppers Tip Line at 1(800) 494-TIPS or by texting the word ‘TIP’ to CRIME (27463). The Boston Police Department will stringently guard and protect the identities of those who wish to help this investigation anonymously.

Copies of the indictments have been added below.

Jan. 9 marked the first two homicides of 2014, the same day Mayor Martin Walsh appointed Boston police veteran William Evans as the department’s commissioner.

William Earl, 20, pleaded innocent to fatally stabbing Samuel Constant, 19, on Margaretta Drive in Hyde Park. A witness told the Boston Globe that Earl stabbed Constant during an argument.

“I killed someone and that’s what you’re going to find,” Earl said to a responding officer, according to police reports.

Earl was placed in custody and taken to Brigham and Women’s Hospital for minor injuries.

“I just want to know if he is dead,” Earl said to an officer who remained with him at the hospital, according to police reports.

Earl was held without bail and a probable cause hearing is set for Feb. 10.

Later that night in Roslindale, 18-year-old Brandon John was shot several times on the street and pronounced dead at the scene. Police are continuing to investigate for suspects and motives.

There is no indication that the shooting was linked to the Hyde Park stabbing, according to the Suffolk County district attorney’s office.

Released by the Suffolk County district attorney’s office on Jan. 10, 2014:

Man, 20, Charged in Fatal Hyde Park Stabbing
BOSTON, Jan. 10, 2014—A Mattapan man was held without bail today in the fatal stabbing of a 19-year-old male on Margaretta Drive yesterday evening, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.

WILLIAM EARL (D.O.B. 8/9/93) was arraigned on one count of murder for the slaying. At the request of Assistant District Attorney Tara Burdman, West Roxbury Municipal Court Judge Ernest Sarason ordered Earl held without bail.

Burdman told the court that Boston Police responded to the scene at about 6:00 to find the victim deceased at the scene and Earl being detained by security guards. The defendant, who was suffering from minor injuries, was transported to Brigham and Women’s Hospital for treatment. Based on witness interviews and his own statements to investigators, Earl was placed under arrest.

The victim has been tentatively identified, but his name is not being released until it can be confirmed and his family can be fully notified.

The Margaretta Drive homicide is not believed to be related to a fatal shooting on Rowe Street in Roslindale about five hours later. The victim in that case has likewise been identified but family notifications are still under way.

The public’s help is essential in identifying violent offenders and proving their guilt in court. Anyone with information on either of last night’s homicides is asked to contact Boston Police homicide detectives at 617-343-4470.

Earl was represented today by attorney Kelli Porges. He will return to court on Feb. 10.

Prosecutors are relying on an inmate’s conversation with Christopher Powell, who claimed self-defense in allegedly fatally stabbing Boston hairstylist Corey Thompson and left him for dead underneath the I-93 overpass last February.

According to that inmate, interviewed by police at Nashua Street Jail, Powell, 40, told the inmate that Thompson, 44, had given him $10,000-$13,000 to purchase drugs.

Police found Thompson dead at the corner of Traveler and Albany streets with eight stab wounds to his chest and torso Feb. 25 in the morning, according to the Suffolk County district attorney’s office.

Powell’s DNA was found on a fence at the scene and on Thompson’s car. Surveillance cameras also captured Powell’s image at the scene, the district attorney said. Police reports show that authorities recovered both a Swiss army knife and $19,000 cash at Powell’s residence.

Powell admitted to stabbing Thompson after his arrest, police said.

Powell told officers that Thompson and Thompson’s boyfriend, David Strout, were intoxicated when they approached Powell and his friend, according to a police report. His friend borrowed Thompson’s phone and left the area. Thompson demanded Powell to retrieve the cellphone. Thompson stabbed him during the argument and ordered him to get in Thompson’s car to look for his friend toward the I-93 overpass, Powell said.

Powell said he jumped out of the car at a stoplight while Thompson and his boyfriend were arguing. Thompson caught up with Powell and started beating him while holding him to the ground. Powell told police he took out his small pocket knife and stabbed Thompson to get him off.

Powell, held without bail, is due back in court Feb. 6.

Released by the Suffolk County district attorney’s office on March 27, 2013:

No Bail in South End Man’s Homicide
BOSTON, March 27, 2013 – An Everett man was charged with murder and ordered held without bail in the stabbing death last month of 44-year-old Corey Thompson, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said today.

CHRISTOPHER W. POWELL (D.O.B. 5/2/73) of Everett was arraigned in Boston Municipal Court this morning in Thompson’s stabbing death in the South End last month. Judge Mark Hart Summerville ordered Powell held without bail at the request of Assistant District Attorney Edmond Zabin, chief of the DA’s Homicide unit.

Zabin told the court that Thompson’s body was discovered under the Interstate 93 overpass at the corner of Albany and Traveler streets on Feb. 25. He had been stabbed approximately eight times, including wounds to the torso and two to the chest. A passerby spotted his remains at about 8:30 that morning and called 911.

The ensuing investigation– led by State Police detectives assigned to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office with the assistance of the Crime Scene Services Section and Troop E units – linked Powell to the scene through video surveillance, witness statements, and physical evidence gathered in the days and weeks that followed. Motive in the incident remains under investigation.

After his arrest yesterday, Powell allegedly made post-Miranda statements admitting that he pulled a knife and stabbed Thompson during a physical altercation, prosecutors said.

Powell was represented by Michael Bourbeau. He will return to court on April 23.

A copy of Powell’s indictment has been added below.

Two South Boston brothers accused of killing Edwin Santos last year have filed several motions for funds from investigators to medical evaluations as their trial is underway, court records show.

Elias, 43, along with his brother Gabriel Sanchez, 32, and Elias’ son, Angel Sanchez, 16, are suspected of beating and fatally stabbing the 29-year-old on Nov. 17 at Dorchester Street. All three men pleaded innocent at their arraignment in November.

The eldest Sanchez, who has not been present in pre-trial hearings, has asked the Commonwealth for funds to cover a pathologist, a psychologist, and an internist, court filings show.

The motions will be heard on April 24 and the Court is waiting to receive Elias Sanchez’s medical records.

During a status review conference in early February, Elias’s attorney Thomas J. Ford voiced concern about his client taking his medication, as noted in court documents.  Specific medical conditions were not noted in the documents.

Gabriel Sanchez’s defense has asked the Court for funds to cover an investigator, a video expert and a transcription, according to his court file. All funds have been approved.

Prosecutors believe the Sanchez trio and Santos knew each other. That November night, Elias approached Santos, who was with his girlfriend, and started beating him with a collapsible baton. He was then joined by Gabriel and Angel Sanchez who each stabbed the victim, Suffolk Assistant District Attorney Mark Zanini told the court during the men’s arraignment.

He said the men tired themselves out and stopped the attack as Santos stumbled to a nearby market where he collapsed and died from blunt force trauma and stab wounds.

The three men are being held without bail.

Ciaran Conneely or “Kiwi” was celebrating an Irish festival in Dorchester on Sunday Oct. 9, 2011, prosecutors have said. The 36-year-old from the Aran Islands would finish the night drinking at a neighborhood bar before walking back to his Nahant Avenue apartment.

But he never made it home.

His body was found yards from his front door with a gunshot wound to the chest at 1 a.m., according to the Suffolk County district attorney’s office.

John Graham, 19, is alleged to have fatally shot Conneely after attempting to rob him.

On the last day to present evidence to the court Tuesday morning, a medical examiner spoke quietly about Conneely’s injuries. A bullet traveled through Conneely’s left rib, piercing both of his lungs and heart before lodging itself to the soft tissue in his back, she said. His face hit the back of a parked pickup truck  as he fell to the ground.

Authorities said the same gun from the Oct. 10 shooting was used in a botched robbery Oct. 30 on Monsignor Patrick J Lydon Way. Two men survived being shot at after refusing to empty their pockets, according to the Suffolk County district attorney’s office.

Prosecutors have combined the two incidents intp one trial. Graham is charged with first-degree murder, armed assault with intent to rob and several firearms offenses.

Released from the Suffolk County district attorney’s office Jan., 9, 2012:

Immigrant’s Slaying Linked to Later Double Shooting
A teenager with no fixed address was held without bail today after a Suffolk County homicide prosecutor said he was responsible for attempted robberies that led to the shooting death of 36-year-old Ciaran Conneely and the non-fatal shootings of two other men last year, District Attorney Daniel F. Conley announced.

JOHN GRAHAM (D.O.B. 12/15/94) was arraigned today on charges of first-degree murder, armed assault with intent to rob, and unlawful possession of a firearm, all in connection with Conneely’s Oct. 10, 2011, slaying in Dorchester.

Graham was also arraigned on two additional counts of armed assault with intent to rob and single counts of armed assault with intent to murder, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, aggravated assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, and unlawful possession of a firearm in connection with the attempted robberies and non-fatal shootings of two other men on Oct. 30, also in Dorchester.

The Suffolk County Grand Jury returned the nine-count indictment on Dec. 20, Conley said, while Graham was held on $100,000 cash bail on a Juvenile Court complaint charging him with the Oct. 30 incident.

Assistant District Attorney Ian Polumbaum of Conley’s Homicide Unit told Clerk Magistrate Gary D. Wilson that Conneely, an Irish immigrant, was walking home to his Nahant Avenue apartment late on the night of Oct. 9.

“Neighbors reported hearing a loud ‘bang’ shortly after midnight,” Polumbaum said. “Conneely was found at 1:00 a.m. a few yards from his residence dead from a gunshot to the chest.”

Similarly, the victims of the Oct. 30 incident were walking home along Monsignor Lydon way when they were approached from behind by a person with a gun who ordered them to empty their pockets.

“They thought the weapon was fake and refused,” Polumbaum said. “The defendant opened fire, striking one victim four times from behind and the other victim in the arm. The first victim suffered life-threatening injuries.”

A break in the case and the connection between the two incidents was made when Boston Police compared the ballistics evidence in the Oct. 10 and Oct. 30 shootings. That comparison showed that the same gun had been used at both scenes, Polumbaum said.

Evidence developed by Boston Police detectives on the street and Suffolk prosecutors in the grand jury included video footage from surveillance cameras in the area. The investigation led to Graham and “other persons aware of his involvement” in the crimes, Polumbaum said.

Graham allegedly made statements to others that he had shot Conneely in the chest near Adams Street while trying to rob him. He also allegedly stated that he shot the two surviving victims after they resisted his robbery demands. Polumbaum said Graham’s statements were consistent with other evidence, including the surviving victims’ own accounts of the incident.

Graham is represented by attorney Randy Gioia. His trial has been scheduled for Jan. 7, 2013, and he is due back in court on March 6.