Methuen Shooting Victim Dies; Police Arrest 24-Year-Old for Murder

Officer Michael Havey Jr. (right) and his K-9 Rumi searched the area near 170 Broadway after an early morning shooting March 15 in Methuen. (Courtesy photograph)

A 30-year-old man shot during an early morning party Friday at a Methuen hookah shop has died, and a 24-year-old stands accused of murder.

Kelvin Frias of Lawrence died this morning after being treated at a Boston hospital for a gunshot wound to the head, according to Carrie Kimball, spokeswoman for Essex County District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett and Methuen Police Chief Joseph E. Solomon.

Meanwhile, Remy Salazar, also of Lawrence, was arrested Friday afternoon in Nashua, N.H., on unrelated warrants after being tracked to a home there by the Massachusetts State Police Violent Fugitive Apprehension Section. The Essex State Police Detective Unit and Methuen Police obtained an arrest warrant Saturday afternoon charging Salazar with murder.

“I commend the excellent teamwork among the Mass, State Police assets and the Methuen and Nashua, N.H., police that resulted in the suspect’s apprehension without further incident thus eliminating the threat to the public’s safety,” said Solomon.

Salazar is due to appear in Nashua District Court Monday morning on the outstanding warrants and on a fugitive from justice charge. It will not be known when he will return to Massachusetts to face the murder charge until after his arraignment.

Solomon said Friday a preliminary investigation into the shooting suggests that gunfire took place at a gathering at the Mr. Hookah vape shop, 170 Broadway, Methuen. Solomon said the shooting was not a random act and believed to be specifically related to a prior incident at that location.

A gun was recovered and police, including K-9 team Officer Michael Havey Jr. and his dog Rumi, investigated the area on Broadway near Oakland Avenue.

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