Latest news with #Waterbury
The Independent
a day ago
- General
- The Independent
Connecticut man gets 33 years in prison for stray-bullet killing of Olympian's mother
A Connecticut man was sentenced to 33 years in prison on Tuesday for the stray-bullet killing of a Puerto Rican Olympic athlete's mother. Jasper Greene, 23, of New Haven, was one of three men charged in the death of Mabel Martinez Antongiorgi on April 9, 2022. The 56-year-old woman was sewing in her home in Waterbury, about 30 miles (48 kilometers) southwest of Hartford, when a bullet flew through a wall and hit her in the head. Martinez Antongiorgi's daughter, Yarimar Mercado Martinez, competed for the family's native Puerto Rico in rifle shooting at the Olympics in 2016, 2021 and 2024. She was in Brazil for another competition when her mother was killed. Greene pleaded guilty to murder in February. His lawyer did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment after Tuesday's sentencing in Waterbury Superior Court. According to court testimony, the fatal shooting stemmed from a dispute that one of the suspects, Franklin Robinson, had with a man who said hello to his girlfriend. Robinson, Greene and another man shot up a car parked on Martinez Antongiorgi's street, thinking the man was inside it. A bullet went into Martinez Antongiorgi's home. Another bystander was wounded but survived. A jury convicted Robinson of murder and other charges in 2023 and he was later sentenced to 90 years in prison. The third suspect, Levi Brock, has pleaded not guilty to multiple charges in the case, including murder, and awaits trial. At the time of her mother's death, Mercado Martinez lamented in social media posts that she 'couldn't even say goodbye.' 'Why you? Why this way?' she wrote. 'You were just sitting in your little house sewing, as you always did.' Martinez Antongiorgi and her husband of over 30 years, John Luis Mercado, moved to Waterbury from Puerto Rico a few years after the U.S. territory endured 2017's devastating Hurricane Maria. At the time of her death, they had set a date to renew their wedding vows, their daughter wrote at the time.
Associated Press
a day ago
- General
- Associated Press
Connecticut man gets 33 years in prison for stray-bullet killing of Olympian's mother
WATERBURY, Conn. (AP) — A Connecticut man was sentenced to 33 years in prison on Tuesday for the stray-bullet killing of a Puerto Rican Olympic athlete's mother. Jasper Greene, 23, of New Haven, was one of three men charged in the death of Mabel Martinez Antongiorgi on April 9, 2022. The 56-year-old woman was sewing in her home in Waterbury, about 30 miles (48 kilometers) southwest of Hartford, when a bullet flew through a wall and hit her in the head. Martinez Antongiorgi's daughter, Yarimar Mercado Martinez, competed for the family's native Puerto Rico in rifle shooting at the Olympics in 2016, 2021 and 2024. She was in Brazil for another competition when her mother was killed. Greene pleaded guilty to murder in February. His lawyer did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment after Tuesday's sentencing in Waterbury Superior Court. According to court testimony, the fatal shooting stemmed from a dispute that one of the suspects, Franklin Robinson, had with a man who said hello to his girlfriend. Robinson, Greene and another man shot up a car parked on Martinez Antongiorgi's street, thinking the man was inside it. A bullet went into Martinez Antongiorgi's home. Another bystander was wounded but survived. A jury convicted Robinson of murder and other charges in 2023 and he was later sentenced to 90 years in prison. The third suspect, Levi Brock, has pleaded not guilty to multiple charges in the case, including murder, and awaits trial. At the time of her mother's death, Mercado Martinez lamented in social media posts that she 'couldn't even say goodbye.' 'Why you? Why this way?' she wrote. 'You were just sitting in your little house sewing, as you always did.' Martinez Antongiorgi and her husband of over 30 years, John Luis Mercado, moved to Waterbury from Puerto Rico a few years after the U.S. territory endured 2017's devastating Hurricane Maria. At the time of her death, they had set a date to renew their wedding vows, their daughter wrote at the time.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Three men arrested following physical altercation in Waterbury
WATERBURY, Conn. (WTNH) — Three men were arrested after a physical altercation in Waterbury on Friday night. At around 9:18 p.m., Waterbury police arrived at 600 South Main Street for a group of males engaging in a physical altercation in the middle of the roadway. Two adult males were injured in the altercation and sustained non-life-threatening injuries. They were both treated at a local hospital. Police investigation led to the arrests of three Waterbury men: Esteban Garcia, 37, Aaron Brown, 32, and Jesus Arroyo, 39. Esteban is charged with assault in the second degree and breach of peace. He is being held on a $2,500 bond. Brown is charged with breach of peace and released on a promise to appear in court. Arroyo's charges include breach of peace and interfering with a police officer. He was also released on a promise to appear in court. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Al Bawaba
7 days ago
- General
- Al Bawaba
Police arrests 19-year-old man over Connecticut mall shooting
May 28 (UPI) -- Police in Connecticut say the 19-year-old suspect who allegedly shot five people at a mall was arrested. Tajuan Washington was identified Wednesday as the suspect behind Tuesday's shooting incident at Brass Mill Center in Waterbury that left five bystanders wounded. Washington was charged with five counts of assault and other weapon violations and was being held on a $2 million bond. "We are very shaken to have this happen here," Waterbury Mayor Paul Pernerewski said Tuesday, adding "we're not broken" and that Waterbury is a "strong city and we are very much standing together." Authorities were called to the scene around 4:43 p.m local time after reports of gunfire. They said shooting victims included four women and one man ranging in age from 20 to 26 who were transported to a local hospital for non-life threatening injuries. According to reports, three have been released and two are said to be in stable condition. Police officials said the shooting was not a random act of violence and believe it started as a fight between two unidentified men. "Evidence suggests the shooting stemmed from a dispute between individuals known to each other, which escalated into gunfire," Waterbury police officials wrote in a Facebook post. They said Washington allegedly pulled out a gun then fired at the man and four others with him before he fled the scene and officers eventually caught up to him. Waterbury police officials say shoppers "went with their instincts" and sheltered before police arrived on the scene. "They were very cooperative in assisting with law enforcement's efforts to make the scene safe," stated Waterbury Police Chief Fernando Spagnolo. On Wednesday during a new conference update, Gov. Ned Lemon said the shooting incident was a "terrible tragedy" that "ripples right into the community" and called Waterbury one of Connecticut's "safest cities" with a "full police force." "But I really worry," the two-term Democratic governor said. "This type of crime is just shocking to me." Meanwhile, the mall was reportedly closed Wednesday with a spokesperson saying mall officials were working "in full cooperation" with Waterbury police as they investigated "this unfortunate incident." "There is no ongoing threat to the public and we will open under normal operating hours once cleared by the city," Brass Miller Center added. In addition, Washington was charged with a flurry of other charges including risk of injury to a child, criminal use of a weapon, illegal firearm discharge, first-degree reckless endangerment, carrying a non-permit pistol and illegal possession of weapons in a vehicle.
The Independent
28-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Man charged in Connecticut mall shooting that wounded 5 as lawyer claims self-defense
A 19-year-old man was charged with assault and weapons crimes after he allegedly shot five people at a Connecticut mall during a dispute, authorities said Wednesday. Tajuan Washington, who was free on $20,000 bail on unrelated motor vehicle charges, drove to police headquarters while officers were surveilling him and surrendered following Tuesday's shooting at the Brass Mill Center in Waterbury, city Police Chief Fernando Spagnolo said during a news conference. The injuries were not life-threatening, officials said. The shooting shortly after 4:30 p.m. sent mall patrons scrambling for safety. Dozens of law enforcement officers responded and searched the mall for hours. Police identified Washington on security video, seeing him leave the mall and drive away, then surveilled his home, Spagnolo said. Washington was ordered detained on $2 million bond as he was arraigned in court Wednesday on charges including first-degree assault, criminal use of a weapon, illegal discharge of a firearm and risk of injury to children. His lawyer, public defender Justin Chan, said he believed Washington was defending himself and added Washington had been traumatized by losing a relative to gun violence. Chan also said there were no convictions on Washington's record. Lawrence Adler, a lawyer for Washington on the motor vehicle charges that include interfering with police, said Washington denies those allegations and called the case insignificant. He said he did not know much about the mall shooting. 'There's nothing about his past to lead anyone to say this kid's on a path to hurting people,' Adler said. Waterbury Mayor Paul Pernerewski Jr. said three people have been discharged from the hospital and two were still being treated. The person most seriously injured, a woman who was shot in the spine, had regained some feeling in her extremities, and officials were hoping she isn't permanently paralyzed, he said. Washington and a man who was with four young women got into a dispute, and Washington pulled a pistol, Pernerewski said. 'It was in effect two young men who knew each other, had a history and a past,' the mayor said. The city was shaken but not broken, Pernerewski said. 'This is a strong city, and we are very much standing together in times of crisis," he said. "We support and we care for one another.' Spagnolo did not release details of the dispute, saying it was not entirely clear but police had some idea what it was about. Spagnolo said evidence indicated the shooter used a .40-caliber handgun, which had not been found. Police with a search warrant seized two rifles and found ammunition at Washington's home that matched ammunition at the mall, Spagnolo said. Police surveilling Washington's home followed him as he drove to police headquarters to report he had been involved in the dispute, Spagnolo said. It was shocking that a dispute that might have just been a fistfight became a shooting instead, Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont said at the news conference. 'Someone pulls out a semiautomatic and shoots seven rounds and badly wounds five people like that — just like that,' Lamont said. Police and witnesses described the chaos of people crying and running, others locking themselves inside areas of the mall, and swarms of police searching for the shooter. Jayvon Turner told WFSB-TV that one of the victims was bleeding heavily. 'It was crazy, and I tried to tell everybody to get out of there," he said. Court records show Washington was accepted into a probation program earlier this year for another set of charges, which have been sealed from public view under the state law for that program, which is generally for first-time offenders. In October, local media reported that Washington was arrested by state police on allegations of driving more than 100 mph (160 kph) on Interstate 84 in Southington. State police said Washington sped away from a trooper who tried to pull him over, and the trooper ended the pursuit for safety reasons. He was later arrested when police traced the speeding car's registration to his home, troopers said. The Brass Mill Center is off Interstate 84 in Waterbury, about 30 miles (about 50 kilometers) southwest of Hartford, the state capital. Spagnolo said police have used the mall for active shooter drills in the past, and that practice helped officers during the response.
