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Franklin County resident William Willey, of Montague, was killed in a two-alarm fire that tore through a garage at 90 East Street in Northfield on Sunday, Nov. 13, the Northwestern District Attorney's Office reports.
The space was rented by Willey, whose body and car were found on the property. The fire required support from several neighboring fire departments and Willey was the sole victim of the incident, as previously reported by Daily Voice.
Willey was facing several charges, including seven counts of aggravated rape and abuse of a child, involving three victims who were abused in Montague and Northfield, the DA"s Office said.
Willey's trial started last Tuesday and was expected to resume on Monday – the day after the fire, according to the office. The charges against Willey were eventually dropped and jurors were dismissed from the case on Wednesday, MassLive reports.
“This is a tragedy for everyone involved, including the victims in the case, one of whom had testified in court last week and another two and their family members who were set to testify this week,” Assistant District Attorney Anne Yereniuk said.
Willey previously pleaded not guilty to 12 counts of rape of a child with a 10-year age difference, among other charges, in 2020, according to an article from the Greenfield Recorder. He was later released after posting a $30,000 bail, the outlet reports.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
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