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Berkshire County District Attorney

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More Charges For Western Mass Man Accused Of 'One Of The Worst Cases' Of Child Sexual Abuse More Charges For Western Mass Man Accused Of 'One Of The Worst Cases' Of Child Sexual Abuse
More Charges For Western Mass Man Accused Of 'One Of The Worst Cases' Of Child Sexual Abuse Federal authorities charged a 38-year-old Berkshire County man already facing more than four dozen charges of child sexual abuse with two more on Wednesday, May 29.  Brain Warner, of Cheshire, was arrested and charged with sexual exploitation of a child and attempted sexual exploitation of a child on Wednesday, May 29, the US Attorney for Massachusetts said. He previously lived in Adams.  Warner was arrested in April and charged with 51 counts of sexually abusing a minor, including multiple accusations of raping a child, indecent assault and battery, and 26 counts of child pornogr…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Alleged Kidnapper Shot Victim While Trying To Restrain Them In Western Mass Basement: DA Alleged Kidnapper Shot Victim While Trying To Restrain Them In Western Mass Basement: DA
Alleged Kidnapper Shot Victim While Trying To Restrain Them In Western Mass Basement: DA A Berkshire County man is accused of attempting to kill a man he had kidnapped on Thursday evening, May 9, authorities said.  Nicholas Lighten, 35, of Dalton, faces 10 major felonies from the alleged violent attack, the Berkshire County District Attorney said. He is being held without bond pending a dangerousness hearing. If he is given bail, it will be set at $500,000, the prosecutor said.  Police were sent to Lighten's home at 43 Housatonic Street in Dalton on Thursday after his alleged victim drove himself to Berkshire Medical Center and explained that he had been kidnappe…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
2 Guilty of Trafficking 100 Lbs of Pot In Massive Grow Operation Uncovered In Western Mass 2 Guilty of Trafficking 100 Lbs of Pot In Massive Grow Operation Uncovered In Western Mass
2 Guilty of Trafficking 100 Lbs of Pot In Massive Grow Operation Uncovered In Western Mass Police and prosecutors unearthed a $3 million marijuana grow operation in a small town in Berkshire County, and now two men are going to prison, authorities said. And it was all thanks to a busted electric box and two quick-thinking linemen.  Yebin Mai, 32, and Dem Wu, 52, both of Staten Island, New York, were both convicted by a jury of trafficking more than 100 pounds of marijuana, the Berkshire County District Attorney said on Tuesday, May 7. Mai was also found guilty of witness intimidation.  The men were arrested on July 30, 2020, after repairmen from Eversource Electric…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Western Mass Man Admits To Sexually Assaulting Child At His Home, Gets 2 Years: DA Western Mass Man Admits To Sexually Assaulting Child At His Home, Gets 2 Years: DA
Western Mass Man Admits To Sexually Assaulting Child At His Home, Gets 2 Years: DA A 68-year-old Berkshire County man has pleaded to multiple counts of indecent assault on a child younger than 14 years old, authorities announced on Tuesday, Feb. 20.  Lochan Kissoon, of Pittsfield, was sentenced to two years in prison for sexually assaulting a minor in his apartment in June 2021, the Berkshire County District Attorney said.  Kissoon cannot have contact with anyone under the age of 16, and he must register as a sex offender once he's released, authorities said. 

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Ex-Olympian Gets 11 Years In Prison For Abusing Boys At Western Mass Camp Ex-Olympian Gets 11 Years In Prison For Abusing Boys At Western Mass Camp
Ex-Olympian Gets 11 Years In Prison For Abusing Boys At Western Mass Camp A former Olympian who was accused of sexually abusing more than 50 boys beginning in the 1970s admitted to the crimes in court on Thursday, Feb. 8, and was sentenced to more than a decade behind bars, authorities said.  Conrad Avondale Mainwaring, a 1976 Summer Olympic hurdler who was a coach and counselor at Camp Greylock for Boys, a summer camp in Beckett, pleaded guilty to 14 counts of indecent assault and battery of boys, some younger than 14 years old, the Berkshire County District Attorney announced.  He was sentenced to serve 10 to 11 years in prison.  Berkshire Count…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Ex-Olympian To Plead Guilty To Molesting Boys At Western Mass Summer Camp: DA Ex-Olympian To Plead Guilty To Molesting Boys At Western Mass Summer Camp: DA
Ex-Olympian To Plead Guilty To Molesting Boys At Western Mass Summer Camp: DA A 72-year-old former Olympic hurdler will plead guilty to molesting multiple boys while serving as a Massachusetts summer camp counselor and coach in the 1970s.  Conrad Avondale Mainwaring is expected to enter a guilty plea on Feb. 8 to charges of indecent assault and battery on boys 14 or younger, the Berkshire County District Attorney said. He was facing 12 counts, but it is unclear how many he will admit to.  Related: Former Olympian Facing New Charges For Assault On Child In Western Mass Mainwaring worked as a camp counselor at Camp Greylock for Boys, which taught sports…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Pittsfield Man, 42, Discussed Sexually Assaulting Child He Met Online: DA Pittsfield Man, 42, Discussed Sexually Assaulting Child He Met Online: DA
Pittsfield Man, 42, Discussed Sexually Assaulting Child He Met Online: DA A Pittsfield man who struck up a sexual conversation with a 14-year-old on Facebook found out that the girl he wanted to assault was a police officer, authorities said.  James Wojtkowski was arrested and charged last week with dissemination of matter harmful to minors, the Berkshire County District Attorney said on Wednesday, Nov. 1.  Related: Plainfield Man Busted Sending Sexual Messages To 'Child' Investigators said Wojtkowski contacted a person he believed to be a 14-year-old girl living in North Adams on April 29. He probed the girl for information like where she went …

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Berkshire DA Clears Trooper In Shooting That Killed 64-Year-Old Hancock Man Berkshire DA Clears Trooper In Shooting That Killed 64-Year-Old Hancock Man
Berkshire DA Clears Trooper In Shooting That Killed 64-Year-Old Hancock Man The Berkshire County District Attorney has ruled that an officer-involved fatal shooting earlier this month in Hancock was justified.  Philip Henault, 64, died on Sept. 9 after he called police to his Richmond Road home to report a fake violent assault, the prosecutor said. But when the trooper arrived, Henault was waiting on him with two butcher knives and demanded the officer kill him.  "The trooper had the right to use this force that was reasonably necessary to overcome the resistance of this person who was in the process of offending him and where he had a duty to arrest," sa…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
No Charges For Man, 73, Who Fought Intruder In Western Mass Home Who Later Died No Charges For Man, 73, Who Fought Intruder In Western Mass Home Who Later Died
No Charges For Man, 73, Who Fought Intruder In Western Mass Home Who Later Died A 73-year-old will not face charges after he got into an altercation with a man at his home in Berkshire County in February, authorities announced on Tuesday, June 27.  The unnamed man told investigators he saw a stranger walking up his driveway and break into his Adams home while he was parked down the street, the Berkshire County District Attorney said in a news release.  The man grabbed a small souvenir bat and went into the home and found Mark Bednarz attempting to drill into his gun safe, the prosecutor said.  “Despite being armed with the small bat, the homeowner …

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by Josh Lanier