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Police & Fire
Western Mass Woman Guilty Of Fatal Stabbing Of Friend Who Tried To Help Her: DA Western Mass Woman Guilty Of Fatal Stabbing Of Friend Who Tried To Help Her: DA
Western Mass Woman Guilty Of Fatal Stabbing Of Friend Who Tried To Help Her: DA A 58-year-old Hampden County woman is expected to spend the rest of her life behind bars for the brutal murder of a friend who was trying to help her, authorities said.  Brenda Mayhew, of Three Rivers, was found guilty of first-degree murder in the 2021 fatal stabbing of Marcia Wilson in her home in Palmer, the Hampden District Attorney said. The penalty for first-degree murder is life in prison without parole.  Police received a 911 call about an attack at 15 Fox Street in Palmer. When officers tried to open the door, they couldn't budge it. The body of Marcia Wilson had fal…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Missing Mass 1-Year-Old Found Safe In Alabama After Mom Kidnaps Him: Police Missing Mass 1-Year-Old Found Safe In Alabama After Mom Kidnaps Him: Police
Missing Mass 1-Year-Old Found Safe In Alabama After Mom Kidnaps Him: Police A missing Massachusetts baby was found safe in Alabama after the boy's mother ran away with the child, authorities said.  The baby went missing on the morning of Thursday, June 20, from Fall River. Genezza Packett, the boy's mother had told the child's aunt, who has custody of the child, that she wanted to take her son to a local Dunkin' and would return to the apartment immediately after, State Police said.  The mom and the baby didn't return. Despite Packett facing multiple non-violent felonies, since she hadn't made any threats, Amber Alert authorities said the matter did not n…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Ex-Mass High School Staffer Who Worked With At-Risk Teens Charged With Raping Child: DA Ex-Mass High School Staffer Who Worked With At-Risk Teens Charged With Raping Child: DA
Ex-Mass High School Staffer Who Worked With At-Risk Teens Charged With Raping Child: DA A former high school staffer who worked with at-risk teenagers has been charged with 30 sex crimes involving children, including forcible rape, child pornography, and trafficking, authorities said.  John Jamar Cokley, 38, of Boston, is accused of seven counts of sex trafficking of a child, five counts of aggravated rape of a child, one count of rape of a child by force, three counts of posing a child in a state of nudity, four counts of posing a child in a state of sexual conduct, four counts of enticing a child under 18 into commercial sex, two counts of inducing a minor to sell a…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Western Mass Man Killed In Ware Crash ID'd Western Mass Man Killed In Ware Crash ID'd
Western Mass Man Killed In Ware Crash ID'd Authorities have identified the 21-year-old who died in a Hampshire County crash earlier this week as a 21-year-old Ware man.  Joseph J. Lynch, of Monson, died on Sunday, June 23, after being involved in a crash on Route 9 near Anderson Road just before 6 p.m., the Northwestern District Attorney said. Another person in the vehicle was airlifted to UMass-Worcester with life-threatening injuries. Two people in the other car, both from Ware, were taken to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield with non-life-threatening injuries.   Ware police are investigating the cause of the …

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Central Mass Man Tried To Bring Gun Into Leominster Hospital: Police Central Mass Man Tried To Bring Gun Into Leominster Hospital: Police
Central Mass Man Tried To Bring Gun Into Leominster Hospital: Police A 27-year-old man was arrested after security at a Worcester County hospital said he tried to bring a gun into the building and made threats when he wasn't allowed in, authorities said.  Darius Webb, of Holden, was barred from entering UMass Memorial Health HealthAlliance — Clinton Hospital on Monday afternoon, June 24, after authorities spotted the firearm during a security screening, Leominster police. As he left, Webb allegedly made "threatening communications." Police locked down the building following the incident, reports said.  Leominster police issued a be-on-the-lookout …

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Ex-Central Mass Retail Manager Who Stole $400K From Employer Sentenced To Prison: Feds Ex-Central Mass Retail Manager Who Stole $400K From Employer Sentenced To Prison: Feds
Ex-Central Mass Retail Manager Who Stole $400K From Employer Sentenced To Prison: Feds A 49-year-old Worcester County former retail manager must repay the money he stole and pay nearly $90,000 in back taxes after he admitted to a payroll scheme at his former company, authorities said.  Anthony Prizio, of Blackstone, was sentenced to three years in prison on Monday, June 24, after he pleaded guilty in February to six counts of wire fraud and one count of tax evasion, the US Attorney for Massachusetts said. He must also pay $431,399 in restitution to his former unnamed employer.  Prizio was a manager at a Worcester second-hand retail store, and investigators said he f…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Police Bust Man In Western Mass Double Shooting That Left 1 Dead Police Bust Man In Western Mass Double Shooting That Left 1 Dead
Police Bust Man In Western Mass Double Shooting That Left 1 Dead A 27-year-old Hampden County man has been arrested in connection with a double shooting that sent one man to the hospital and left another one dead earlier this month in Holyoke, authorities said.  Brian Gonzalez, of Holyoke, is charged with murder in the slaying of David Rivera on June 1, the Hampden District Attorney’s Office said.  Holyoke police were called to the 400 block of High Street around 2 a.m. to reports of a shooting that happened during an argument. Officers found a man suffering from a gunshot wound, and responders rushed him to Baystate Medical Center with no…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
CT State Troopers Smash Allegedly Drunk Driver’s Window CT State Troopers Smash Allegedly Drunk Driver’s Window
CT State Troopers Smash Allegedly Drunk Driver’s Window Connecticut State Police had to smash a window and use a taser on a 24-year-old man before charging him with alleged drunk driving.  The incident occurred in Middlesex County around 2:30 a.m., Saturday, June 22, on 1-91 northbound in Middletown between the rest area and Exit 20.  According to State Police, troopers found a black GMC Sierra pickup with a Massachusetts license plate parked in the right climbing lane and several damaged DOT traffic cones.  The truck's engine was running, and the driver was slumped over the steering wheel, state police said. Troopers attempted …

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by Kathy Reakes
Police & Fire
Man Admits To Killing Athol Woman In Head-On Western Mass Crash, Will Lose License For 15 Years Man Admits To Killing Athol Woman In Head-On Western Mass Crash, Will Lose License For 15 Years
Man Admits To Killing Athol Woman In Head-On Western Mass Crash, Will Lose License For 15 Years A 64-year-old Needham man has admitted to causing the head-on collision in Franklin County last year that killed a 57-year-old woman, authorities announced on Monday, June 24.  Benoit Marande, 64, pleaded guilty to motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation in the June 30, 2023, crash and was sentenced to nine months in prison along with a 15-year revocation of his license, the Northwestern District Attorney's Office said. A judge suspended all but 30 days of Marande's prison term.  Marande was accused of killing Tracy Matthews when his Mazda MX-5 Miata crossed o…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Man Indicted In Fatal Stabbing Of Single Mother Last Year In Central Mass Man Indicted In Fatal Stabbing Of Single Mother Last Year In Central Mass
Man Indicted In Fatal Stabbing Of Single Mother Last Year In Central Mass A 57-year-old Worcester County man has been indicted in the fatal stabbing of his girlfriend, a single mother, inside their trailer the day after Christmas last year, authorities said on Monday, June 24.  Orlando Garcia Rosado, of Lunenburg, is charged with murder and assault and battery on a family or household member in the killing of Maria Murray, age 53, the Worcester County District Attorney announced.  Related: Support Floods In For Family Of Mother Killed In Lunenburg Attack Police were called to their home at 1790 Massachusetts Ave. in Lunenburg just a…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
21-Year-Old Killed In Western Mass Crash; 3 Others Hospitalized 21-Year-Old Killed In Western Mass Crash; 3 Others Hospitalized
21-Year-Old Killed In Western Mass Crash; 3 Others Hospitalized A 21-year-old man was killed over the weekend in a two-car crash in Hampshire County, authorities said.  The Monson man was involved in the crash on Route 9 near Anderson Road in Ware just before 6 p.m. on Sunday, June 23, the Northwestern District Attorney said. He died at the scene.  Authorities have not released his name. A second person in the car, a 20-year-old from Warren, was airlifted to UMass Medical Center in Worcester with life-threatening injuries. Two people in the other car were taken to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield with non-life-threatening injuries. …

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Parts Of Endangered Species Smuggled Into US By Mass. Man: Feds Parts Of Endangered Species Smuggled Into US By Mass. Man: Feds
Parts Of Endangered Species Smuggled Into US By Mass. Man: Feds A 39-year-old Reading man is accused of helping smuggle the skulls, skins, and other parts of animals — many of them endangered — into the United States to sell on the black market, federal authorities said.  Adam Bied is charged with two counts of conspiracy to smuggle goods into the United States, specifically, illegally imported wildlife parts, and three counts of violating the Lacey Act which prohibits trafficking in wildlife, the US Attorney for Massachusetts said.  The indictment said Bied brought in more than 100 animal parts from January 2018 through June 2021, knowin…

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by Josh Lanier