Crime

Haverhill

Masked Man Allegedly Threatens 8-Year-Old Girl During Burglary on Haverhill’s White Street

By Allison Corneau | February 4, 2019

Local police are investigating an alleged burglary and threats made on White Street. (Courtesy photograph)

Haverhill Police seek the public’s assistance to identify a masked man who entered a home on White Street early Sunday and allegedly threatened a juvenile during a burglary just after 5 a.m.

Capt. Stephen J. Doherty Jr. tells WHAV the suspect, wearing a hood and mask, opened the first-floor window to the home around 5:05 a.m. and entered the room where the juvenile was asleep in bed. The man then made threats toward the 8-year-old girl and fled the area, Doherty said. Surveillance from the scene shows the alleged burglar clad in a light-colored outfit with dark shoes and gloves. Anyone with knowledge of the incident is asked to call Detective Kyle McCann at 978-373-1212 x1578.

Haverhill

Haverhill Teen Who Allegedly Got Gun Past Police to Face Superior Court Judge

By Allison Corneau | February 1, 2019

Criminal defense attorney Alex Moskovsky (left) acted on Elijah Oliver's behalf during a Haverhill District Court arraignment September 21. (WHAV News photograph)

Elijah Oliver, who police say is a “ranking member” of one of Haverhill’s two feuding gangs, is set to face a Superior Court judge this month on charges he allegedly slipped a loaded handgun past police during an arrest in September. An Essex County grand jury indicted the Haverhill 19-year-old during a secret session that now elevates his case from the district to superior court level, District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett’s spokeswoman Carrie Kimball told WHAV. As WHAV previously reported, Oliver was arrested in September 2018 for carrying an unlicensed loaded firearm. While taking him into custody, police pat-frisked and handcuffed Oliver, locating marijuana—but not the Smith & Wesson 9mm loaded with seven bullets he allegedly tucked into his sweatpants.

Haverhill

Haverhill Police Investigating Thursday Night Shooting on Bellevue Avenue

By Allison Corneau | January 31, 2019

Officials investigated a shooting near Swasey Field on Jan. 31. (Jay Saulnier photograph for WHAV News)

A 26-year-old man suffered what police are describing as “non-life threatening injuries” in a Thursday night shooting on the city’s Bellevue Avenue, WHAV has confirmed. He was medflighted to a Boston hospital for treatment and the investigation into the shooting is ongoing. This is the second instance of gunfire in the city in recent weeks.

Haverhill

Wallaces’ Uncle Rivera in Solitary Confinement After Getting Jumped by Inmates

By Allison Corneau | January 31, 2019

The uncle of late Consentino student Precious Wallaces was assaulted by fellow inmates at the Middleton House of Correction hours after being arraigned on a new charge of alleged child rape. (File photograph)

Miguel Rivera, the Lawrence man charged in connection with the sudden death of his 11-year-old niece Precious Wallaces, has been moved to solitary confinement after being jumped at the Middleton House of Correction Tuesday night, Sheriff Kevin F. Coppinger tells WHAV. The alleged assault took place at 8:30 p.m. on Jan. 29, just hours after Rivera appeared before a Lawrence District Court judge on new charges of alleged rape of a child. As a result of the brawl—that included four inmates—the 58-year-old will be held in solitary confinement.

Haverhill

Wallaces’ Uncle Rivera Faces New Charge of Alleged Rape of a Child

By Allison Corneau | January 29, 2019

The uncle of 11-year-old late Consentino student Precious Wallaces has been charged with alleged rape of a child, the Essex County District Attorney’s office confirmed Tuesday. (File photograph)

Miguel Rivera, the 58-year-old uncle of Haverhill 11-year-old Precious Wallaces, was back before a Lawrence District Court judge Tuesday, this time facing a new charge of alleged rape of a child with force, WHAV confirms.

The new charge comes one week after Rivera was arraigned for allegedly permitting substantial bodily injury leading to the girl’s December death. The victim at the center of the new charge has not been publicly identified, though the incident is said to have taken place on Dec. 15, 2018 at Rivera’s Lawrence home. As WHAV previously reported, Consentino sixth-grader Wallaces and her sibling spent the night of Dec.

Haverhill

Haverhill Police Arrest Two Maine Women for Alleged Fentanyl Trafficking

By Allison Corneau | January 28, 2019

Two out-of-state women were arrested for alleged drug offenses last week. (Jay Saulnier file photograph for WHAV News)

Police nabbed two out-of-state women for alleged fentanyl trafficking on Thursday, WHAV can confirm. Officer Dana Burrill Jr. initially stopped Biddeford, Maine’s Angela Gagnon-Croteau and Harrison, Maine’s Adrienne Werda on Bank Road for an alleged motor vehicle violation just after 6:30 p.m.

Further investigation led to the pair’s arrest for alleged fentanyl trafficking, arrest records show. Thirty-five-year-old Gagnon-Croteau and 23-year-old Werda are also charged with conspiracy to violate drug laws.

Haverhill

Haverhill Man to Spend 8-10 Years in Prison for 2016 Housebreak Spree

By Allison Corneau | January 24, 2019

Juan Mejia pleaded guilty to 36 of 57 indictments on the eve of trial, the DA’s office said. (File photograph)

A 26-year-old Haverhill man is set to spend eight to 10 years in state prison for a prolonged housebreak spree in 2016, Essex County District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett said Thursday. Juan Mejia pleaded guilty to 36 of 57 indictments brought against him in connection with 34 housebreaks between August and October 2016. His sentence was imposed by Lawrence Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Karp on the eve of his case going to trial, Blodgett’s spokeswoman Carrie Kimball told WHAV. “While this is not a crime of violence, it has a significant and long-lasting impact on the victims. Their sense of security and well-being was greatly disrupted in the very place where they should feel safe,” Blodgett said in a statement after Mejia’s sentencing.