Although a large number of witnesses have been identified in police reports, WHAV has decided to initially identify only the victim and the man charged with murder. WHAV may adjust this policy as details unfold in court.
The 19-year-old stabbing victim and the 18-year-old arrested for his murder were the current and previous boyfriends of the same woman who had all met at Haverhill Stadium Tuesday night for a “fist fight.”
District Court Judge Allen Swan learned the details during the video arraignment of Oscar Quinones Thursday morning. Quinones was ordered held without bail while the state presumably seeks a felony indictment from a grand jury.
Various witness interviews presented all agree Quinones and Efrain Indio Maisonet—both 2019 Haverhill High School graduates—agreed to the fight time around 8 p.m. and stadium location. According to a report by Haverhill Patrolman William Mears, the young men were accompanied by the woman who had been Maisonet’s current girlfriend and various other teenagers. Maisonet, known by his nickname “Nene,” was already outside in the rear parking lot at Haverhill stadium when Quinones rode up as a passenger in a car with three other people.
Maisonet’s girlfriend and another 19-year-old woman both said Quinones exited the car and began hitting the other teen “in the chest in a downward motion.” It wasn’t until Quinones withdrew that the women noticed a knife and Maisonet exclaimed he had been stabbed. The girlfriend told Mears “the knife was big and looked like a fishing knife.” She and other witnesses said Quinones then got back in the car and sped off. The two women, accompanied by another 18-year-old man and his female friend rushed the bleeding teen to Holy Family Hospital across the street.
The hearing also revealed hospital staff tended to Maisonet until 12:20 a.m. when he was medflighted to Boston. Police learned just after 1 a.m. that the teen had died, turning the case into a murder investigation.
Quinones was arrested hours later near Harbor Place, downtown. He told Detective Kevin Portnoy he had “ongoing issues” with Maisonet for five years. He described the confrontations as “verbal at times, but have also escalated to physical altercations.” In his version of events, Quinones claimed he and Maisonet had only a verbal argument at first, but that his car had been blocked from leaving by the women. He admitted to stabbing Maisonet twice, but only after being punched while trying to leave. The Haverhill detective noted Quinones had “no visible marks on him.” Police said Quinones refused to name the other two men and a woman who were with him.
Quinones’ attorney Jeffrey Miller argued his client should be released on $25,000 cash bail with conditions. District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett’s office argued for, and won, holding him until a June 8 hearing.