Christmas Eve Murder at the Galleria
"Most Wanted" Man from 1997 Murder Arrested in New York
Characteristics of Murder in Cambridge
Murders of the 1990s
Murder Over the Past 25 Years
1999 Annual Report
Murder
Murder and non-negligent manslaughter is the willful (non-negligent) killing of one human being by another. The classification for this offense, as for all crime index offenses, is based solely on police investigation, as opposed to the determination of a court, medical examiner, coroner, jury, or other judicial body. Not included in the count for this offense classification are death caused by negligence, suicide, or accident; justifiable homicides; and attempts to murder or assaults with the intent to murder, which are scored as aggravated assaults.
| September Murder
Remains Unsolved
Christmas Eve Murder at the Galleria "Most Wanted" Man from 1997 Murder Arrested in New York Characteristics of Murder in Cambridge Murders of the 1990s |
Murder Over the Past 25 Years
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Mankind’s most egregious offense remains low in Cambridge compared to other cities and towns, but with violent crime falling rapidly, each gunshot fired resonates throughout the city, from Lechmere Square to Fresh Pond, shocking everyone who lives, works, and plays here.
As murder is rarely an end unto itself, each incident tends to highlight a deeper problem or set of problems that conspire to take lives. Such is the case with Cambridge’s two 1999 murders (reviewed below)—incidents that highlight the consequences of street violence—of gangs, drugs, guns, or the recklessness of youth coming together at the wrong place at the wrong time, leading to a deadly conclusion
Similarly, the two murders in 1998 remind us of the often fatal implications of family violence; while 1996 and 1997 killings emphasize the perils faced by those living on the streets. These three causes and categories of killing—street violence, family violence, and homeless violence—were identified in 1990 as the primary factors behind murder in Cambridge, and the same remains true at the end of the decade.
September Murder Remains Unsolved
After-hours shooting in Central Square leaves a Boston man dead
On Saturday, September 18, 1999, at 3:15 a.m., 30-year-old Collin Burton of Dorchester, with two friends, stopped at Hi-Fi Pizza in Central Square after a night at the Hong Kong and the House of Blues. A green Ford Explorer pulled up outside the Hi-Fi. Burton had a conversation with the occupants, then banged on the hood of the vehicle. The man in the passenger seat then fired through the open window, striking Burton once in the chest. Burton’s friends rushed him to Boston Medical Center, where Burton died the following Monday. Burton’s friends have cooperated with the investigation, but no arrests have been made and no warrants have been issued.
This murder has elevated fears of violence in Central Square, which has long been Cambridge’s most prolific drug and robbery hot spot. Several drug related shootings in Area 4 were reported in the weeks preceding this murder.
Christmas Eve Murder at the Galleria
Shooter on the “Most Wanted” list
At 5:10 p.m. on December 24, 1999, a fight erupted between two groups of young males in the parking garage of the CambridgeSide Galleria. It is uncertain, but the men seemed to know each other and may have been gang members. During the brawl, one or two guns were pulled, and Gary M. Chatelain, a 20-year-old Haitian male from Roslindale with an extensive history of drug crimes and violent crimes in the Boston area, took a fatal shot to the chest. The gunshots sparked pandemonium in the garage as shoppers and members of the two groups fled.
On January 7, 2000, a warrant was issued for the arrest of Jose Nunes Correia, 19, of Dorchester, believed to be the shooter who struggled with Chatelain. Correia was soon added to the Cambridge Police Department’s “Most Wanted” list.
This murder comes after a year of increasing Boston youth violence at the CambridgeSide Galleria. Several brawls, assaults, robberies, and other disturbances were reported throughout the year involving juveniles, often gang-affiliated, from Boston.
Man “Most Wanted” for 1997 Murder Arrested in New York.
On August 19, 1997, 19-year-old Benny Rosa of Cambridge was gunned down in Hoyt Field, caught in a criss-cross of bullets fired by two men: Anthony Cole, 20, and Craig Joseph, 25, both of Boston. Two others were wounded. Cole was arrested two days later, but Joseph went on the lam and was added to the Cambridge Police Department’s “Most Wanted” list.
Joseph’s life as a fugitive ended on September 16, 1999, when New York City Police arrested him on drug charges. Joseph was using the alias “Ron Joseph,” but Cambridge Police detectives, acting on information received from an informant, asked the NYPD to compare “Ron Joseph’s” fingerprints to Craig Joseph’s.
Joseph has been extradited from New York and currently awaits trial.
Characteristics of Murder in Cambridge
For the thirty-year period between 1960 and 1989, the city averaged four and a half murders each year. The annual average for the 1990 has fallen to just over two per year. (Nationally, cities of around 100,000 residents average six murders per year.) Trend analysis over the past decades points to three recurring murder scenarios in Cambridge:
1. Domestic murder, in which an elderly female is brutally killed by her husband in a homicidal rage;
2. Arguments among the homeless that, often fueled by drugs or alcohol, escalate into deadly violence; and
3. The murder of young men by handguns or knives in street robberies or drug deals gone awry.
Since 1990, there have been 23 murders in the city of Cambridge. 13 of the victims were male (average age of 27), and 10 were female (average age of 46). A handgun was the murder weapon in nine of the incidents, and a knife was used in seven. Eight of the 21 murders reported since 1990 are still under investigation.
|
Map # |
Date & Time |
Location |
Victim(s) |
Offender(s) |
Story |
Status |
|
1 |
1/25/90 01:00 |
Windsor St. & School St. (Area 4) |
Jessie McKie, 21 and Rigoberto Carrion, 30, of Cambridge |
Ventrey Gordon, 20, and Sean Lee, 21, of Mattapan. |
McKie and Carrion were walking on thre street when a group of men approached them. The men tried to steal McKie’s leather jacket and stabbed both victims to death. |
Gordon and Lee both convicted of murder. One other man convicted of accessory to murder. A fourth man tried and acquitted. |
|
2 |
4/3/90 00:00 to 06:00 |
100 Pacific St. (Cambridgeport) |
Jacqueline W. Blenman, 39, of Cambridge |
Unknown |
The victim was found strangled and dumped on the street. |
Unsolved |
|
3 |
3/15/91 23:00 |
97 Hampshire St. (Inman/Harrington) |
Uri Woods, 29, of Cambridge |
Unknown |
The victim was shot to death on the street. |
Unsolved |
|
4 |
4/4/91 20:58 |
Sparks St. & Brewster St. (West Cambridge) |
Mary Joe Frug, 49, of Cambridge |
A white male in his 20s in a black leather jacket |
Frug was walking a few blocks from her residence when an unknown assailant stabbed her to death. |
Unsolved |
|
5 |
5/7/91 |
Porter Square (North Cambridge) |
Derrick Chance, 24, of Cambridge |
Courtney Lewis, 24, of Cambridge |
The victim was slashed to death with a razor during an argument in a fast food restaurant. |
Lewis was convicted of manslaughter. |
|
6 |
9/29/91 03:30 |
16 Mildred Hamilton Pl. (Riverside) |
Bobbie Schley, 45, of Cambridge |
Morris King, 48, of Barbados |
Schley was stabbed to death in an argument with King, her boyfriend. |
King was convicted of murder. |
|
7 |
12/5/91 15:00 |
162 Hampshire St. (Area 4) |
Esther Olofson, 49, of Cambridge |
Unknown |
Olofson was reported missing by her friends and family. Her body was later found in her bed. She had apparently been strangled. |
Unsolved |
|
8 |
9/19/92 20:30 |
Massachusetts Av. & Memorial Dr. (MIT) |
Yngye Raustein, 21, an MIT student |
Shon HcHugh, 16; Joseph Donovan, 17; and Alfredo Velez, 18, all of Cambridge |
Raustein was stabbed to death in a robbery gone sour. |
All three suspects were convicted of murder |
|
9 |
11/28/92 00:30 |
Cambridge St. & Columbia St. (Inman/Harrington) |
Tyrone Phoenix, 18, of Dorchester |
Shawn Carter, 21, of Cambridge |
Phoenix and other youths were driving in Cambridge. When they came to a stoplight, Carter came over and rapped on the window. After being told to get away from the car, he pulled out a pistol and started shooting. |
Carter was convicted of murder |
|
10 |
9/22/93 21:30 |
324 Rindge Ave. (North Cambridge) |
Michael Garner, 23, of Cambridge |
Three young black males |
Michael Garner was walking home when three young black males confronted him and tried to rob him of his gold chains. The robbery went astray, and Garner was shot twice and killed. |
Unsolved |
|
11 |
9/25/93 19:30 |
160 Elm St. (Inman/Harrington) |
Rosalie Whalen, 54, of Cambridge |
Dennis Whalen, 54, of Cambridge |
Whalen bludgeoned his wife to death with a hammer. |
Whalen was convicted of murder |
|
12 |
3/31/94 16:00 |
Rear of CASPAR shelter, 240 Albany St. (Cambridgeport) |
Edward Semino |
Unknown |
The victim was beaten to death in a fight between homeless people. |
Unsolved |
|
13 |
1/24/95 |
700 Huron Ave. (Strawberry Hill) |
Claire Downing, 60, of Cambridge |
Ken Downing, 62, of Cambridge |
Downing beat his wheelchair-bound wife to death with a blunt object. |
Downing was tried and convicted of murder |
|
14 |
5/30/95 08:00 |
Harvard University Dunster House (Riverside) |
Trang Phuong Ho, 22, Harvard student |
Sinedu Tadesse, Harvard student |
After Ho told Tadesse she did not want to room with her the following her, Tadesse stabbed Ho to death and then hung herself. |
Tadesse committed suicide. |
|
15 |
8/9/95 15:30 |
304 Prospect St. (Inman/Harrington) |
Lilia Fagundes, 42, owner of market |
Black male, 15-16 years old, with a thin build |
Fagundes was shot to death in her store, possibly in a robbery gone awry |
Unsolved |
|
16 |
11/22/96 18:40 |
1033 Massachusetts Ave. (Mid-Cambridge) |
Laurence Cooper, 50s, a homeless veteran |
Richard Kachadorian, 50, of Cambridge |
Kachadorian stabbed Cooper in the throat and chest during a street argument. |
Kachadorian was tried and convicted of murder |
|
17 |
3/26/97 01:25 |
East Street trailer yards (East Cambridge) |
Helena Gardner, 19, homeless |
Nicole Fernandes, 19, homeless; Randy Williams, homeless; Mark McCray; homeless |
Fernandes lured Gardner, with the promise of a drink, to an abandoned trailer. Fernandes bound Gardner to a chair, whipped her with a metal rod and rose thorns, and then bludgeoned her to death with a sledgehammer before setting the trailer on fire. The two men watched. |
Fernandes and Williams convicted of murder. McCray awaits trial. |
|
18 |
8/19/97 20:55 |
Hoyt Field (Riverside) |
Benny Rosa, 19, of Cambridge |
Anthony Cole, 20, and Craig Joseph, 25, of Boston |
Cole and Joseph encountered each other in Hoyt Field and fired on each other. Rosa was caught in the crossfire. Two others were wounded. |
Cole convicted of murder. Joseph fled and was caught in New York City in 1999. He awaits trial. |
|
19 |
10/16/98 10:56 |
157 Fifth St. (East Cambridge) |
Joseph Beranger, 64, and Mary Beranger, 64, of California |
John J. Hinds, 56, of Cambridge |
Hinds and his half-brother, Joseph, and sister were involved in an on-going dispute over their mother and her residence. At the time of the incident, Joseph and his wife Mary were on their way to see their mother. Hinds got there first, an argument ensued, and Hinds shot his sister in the head. Then he fatally shot Joseph and Mary Beranger. |
Hinds awaits trial. |
|
20 |
9/18/99 03:15 |
496 Massachusetts Ave. (Cambridgeport) |
Colin Burton, 30, of Dorchester |
2 or more black males in a Ford Explorer |
Burton and two friends stopped at Hi-Fi Pizza in Central Square. A green Ford Explorer pulled up outside the restaurant. While Burton was talking with the occupants, he banged on the hood of the vehicle. The man in the passenger seat fired through the open window, striking Burton once in the chest. Burton died the following Monday. |
Under active investigation |
|
21 |
12/23/99 17:10 |
CambridgeSide Galleria parking garage (East Cambridge) |
Gary M. Chatelain, 20, of Roslindale |
Jose N. Correia, 20, of Roxbury |
Chatelain and Correia, known to each other, were part of two groups involved in a fight in the garage. Corriea shot Chatelain in the chest. |
Warrant issued for Correia’s arrest; he remains a fugitive. |
Back to the 1999 Annual Report Index
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Last Updated: 03/10/00 11:57:44