Latest news with #EssexSuperiorCourt
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Yahoo
Man indicted in connection with deaths of men found near Salem Walmart
A 30-year-old man accused of killing two men who were found behind a Walmart in Salem was indicted this week, court records show. Jay Blodget, a homeless man who lived in a wooded area behind the store, was indicted on two counts of murder. The indictment is a procedural step moving Blodget's case from Salem District Court to Essex Superior Court. A superior court arraignment has not been set for Blodget. Few details have been revealed about the killings, but prosecutors have said the two men were found hidden under dirt and other 'materials.' Both had been stabbed and died of blunt force trauma, a prosecutor said during Blodget's arraignment in district court. The men killed have since been identified as Andrew Ross Guempel, 41, of Arizona, and Jonathan Thompson, 42, of Oregon. One of the men was found by a man walking his dog on April 23. Responding officers found the other man's body the same day. Prosecutors say Blodget 'made statements implicating himself in the two murders' after he was taken into police custody. Michael Phelan, an attorney representing Blodget, said he was 'cordial' and 'polite' in initial conversations. Blodget 'asked intelligent questions,' Phelan said, adding he planned to 'definitely explore whether there's [a] mental health issue.' About a week before Guempel and Thomspon were found, Blodget was arrested on a breaking and entering charge, after police say he used a hacksaw to enter a storage container near the Walmart. The woman who owned the container called Salem Police around 7:30 p.m. on April 17. She told police she was at the container to get some items, but heard a noise inside. Blodget then walked out of the container and offered money to the woman and her husband, but they refused and called police, according to court filings. Though he had a hacksaw and was therefore considered 'dangerous,' Blodget had no other weapons on him and apologized to the officers as he was put into handcuffs at the scene. 'Blodget stated that he got kicked out of the woods near Walmart and had no place to go,' the documents read. He had found the storage container while looking for somewhere to sleep, bought a hacksaw and cut off the locks, then brought a mattress in and started 'tossing things out' to make space, the documents read. Some jewelry was also missing from the container, which Blodget denied taking and said he had thrown it outside. During Blodget's arrest, police seized a green bicycle and all of the panhandling money Blodget earned, which totaled over $6,700, documents showed. Reading police ask for public's help after 12 cars were broken into, 2 stolen Dorchester teen accused of ramming Boston Police officer with moped Man found guilty of killing Mass. couple in drunken driving crash from 2021 Mass. couple to plead guilty to Ponzi scheme that netted more than $3.2 million Agreement reached in lawsuit over Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center assault Read the original article on MassLive.
Boston Globe
14-02-2025
- Boston Globe
ICE arrested a migrant accused of child rape, two years after he was placed on home arrest by state
Fernando-Perez was charged with child rape in Feb. 28, 2022, after an investigation by Lynn police, records show. He is accused of repeatedly raping and sexually assaulting a child known to him when she was between the ages of 5 and 7 years old, according to prosecutors. He pleaded not guilty in Essex Superior Court on Aug. 10, 2022, where bail was set at $7,500. At the request of Essex District Attorney Paul F. Tucker's office, Fernando-Perez was placed on house arrest with GPS monitoring on Sept. 16, 2022, records show. Advertisement In a statement Thursday, ICE cited Fernando-Perez as an example of the agency's policy of detaining the 'worst first' as it pursues the Trump administration's crackdown on illegal immigration. 'He is exactly the type of alien we are targeting with our 'worst first' policy. He posed a significant danger to the children of Massachusetts, and we will not tolerate such a threat to our community. ICE Boston will continue to prioritize the safety of our public by arresting and removing egregious alien offenders from our New England communities.' ICE did not say why it had not previously sought to detain Fernando-Perez while he was living in Framingham. A spokesman said by email on Friday that the agency was reviewing its records. The agency said it had twice lodged civil immigration detainers with Massachusetts officials. On May 16, 2022, it filed a request with Essex Sheriff Kevin F. Coppinger's office. It filed a second request with Essex Superior Court on Oct. 6, 2022. Advertisement 'The Essex County Superior Court ignored the immigration detainer against Fernando and released him on pre-trial conditions Oct. 6, 2022,' ICE said in its statement. But by that point, Fernando-Perez was already wearing the GPS monitoring bracelet and living in Framingham at an address listed in court records. ICE makes detainer requests to police departments, courts, or sheriff's offices to hold someone they intend to release for up to two days. The agency lodges such civil requests — they are not criminal warrants — when it suspects someone of being in the country illegally and eligible for deportation. Immigration officials have regularly criticized the court system and local police departments for not honoring such detention requests, but Massachusetts' highest court ruled in 2017 that court officials and local law enforcement officials cannot hold a person who is wanted solely for civil immigration violations. 'Massachusetts law provides no authority for Massachusetts court officers to arrest and hold an individual solely on the basis of a Federal civil immigration detainer, beyond the time that the individual would otherwise be entitled to be released from State custody,' the court ruled. The SJC said it would be up to the Legislature to decide whether to change state law. John R. Ellement can be reached at
