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Hoosac Valley Student Killed in Motor Vehicle Accident

CHESHIRE, Mass. — The Hoosac Valley High School community is mourning the tragic death of one its students late Monday night. 
 
Kaliq Sherman, a junior, was killed in a single car accident on upper East Hoosac Street. 
 
There were five other teenagers in the care with him, including three Hoosac students who incurred injuries in the crash. All five teens were taken to Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield by ambulance and were treated for minor injuries. 
 
According to the district attorney's office, the accident occurred about 11:30 on Monday night. When emergency responders arrived on the scene they found a vehicle that had travelled down a steep embankment and was resting on the passenger side against a tree.
 
Sherman, 17, of Adams was inside the vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene. Five other occupants of the vehicle were located and taken to Berkshire Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries. 
 
The accident remains under investigation by state police detectives assigned to the district attorney's office, state troopers from Crime Scene Services (CSS) and the Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section (CARS) and members of the Adams Police Department.
 
Hoosac Princial Jeremiah Ames said Sherman was a member of the track team and "an enthusiastic artist."
 
"We have spoken with all of our students about what occurred," he wrote in an email to the Hoosac community and parents. 
 
Parents were informed earlier on Tuesday about the incident and told that counselors would be available for students who needed to speak with them or would be given some time alone to deal to process what had happened. 
 
"The best thing for many of our students today will be to stick to established routines," Ames wrote. "Know that we will continue to do all we can to support your children through this difficult time."  
 
Superintendent Robert Putnam said the school's Crisis Team went to work early in the morning to provide timely information and emotional support for students, families, and staff. Neighboring districts  alsocalled in to offer support and personnel and counselors from McCann Technical School and C.T. Plunkett joined the Hoosac Valley team to provide additional support because of their familiarity with our students.  
 
"The ACRSD deeply appreciates the offer of support and sympathy from our neighbors," Putnam wrote. "The thoughts and prayers of the entire ACRSD community go out to the families of the students involved."
     

Superior Court Briefs: June 7 - June 8

Staff Reports
Cases heard before Judge Maureen Hogan on Wednesday, June 7.
 
John Dyer Sr., 41, of Springfield had a not guilty plea entered on his behalf on a single count of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute - his second offense.
 
He was released on $1,000 bail. The incident allegedly occurred in Pittsfield on March 24, 2017.
 
Cases heard before Judge Maureen Hogan on Thursday, June 8.
 
Troy Fernandez, 27, of Dorchester pleaded guilty to a single count of possession of cocaine.
 
He was ordered to serve 45 days at the Berkshire County House of Correction. The charge stems from the execution of a search warrant at 144 Brayton Hill Terrace in North Adams on December 6, 2016.
     

Pittsfield Police: No Cause For Alarm About Missing Teen Reports

Staff Reports
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — In the past few day, the Police Department has posted on Facebook numerous requests for information regarding local missing teenagers. In the last 10 days, there have been eight juveniles reported as missing or runaway.
 
That, of course, triggered alarm among many fearing there was some type of outbreak of abductions or a trend. But, on Thursday, the Police Department said that isn't true. 
 
The department had used Facebook to gather leads on several missing teens. Seeing success, it kept using Facebook to get the word out in hopes to find the other missing juveniles.
 
"The decision to make the recent posts was made by the investigating detectives in an effort to generate leads and based on recent success. For example, one of the missing teens was located with 24 hours of our Facebook post," wrote Capt. Jeffrey Bradford.
 
"The social media post reached 46,157 people and was shared 1,228 times. While the circumstances of these cases cannot be released, the information gathered by our department does not point to a specific public safety risk. Although we are always concerned when a juvenile's whereabouts is not known by their parent or legal guardian, and our detectives treat these cases seriously, the recent number of reports is not unusual or out of the ordinary for our community."
 
Of the eight reported missing, which police say is a normal number of reports, six have already been found and two reported on Wednesday remain missing. The department has since deleted posts regarding the missing teens who were found.
 
"The purpose of this press release is to inform the media and public that our department has not received any information that these teens have been victimized or that the individual reports are connected," Bradford wrote.
 
The department also clarified its terminology when saying a juvenile is "missing" or is a "runaway." Missing is a term used to describe individuals who have not been in contact with family or friends for an unusual amount of time and runaway is a juvenile who said he or she had no intent to return to parents or legal guardians. 
 
"In many cases, it is not clear which category best describes a specific juveniles situation. As a result of this the words 'missing'  and 'runaway' are commonly used together," Bradford wrote.
     

Superior Court Briefs: May 31 - June 1

Staff Reports
Cases heard before Judge Edward McDonough on Wednesday, May 31.
 
Antoine Crichlow, 39, of Pittsfield pleaded guilty to single counts of strangulation or suffocation, assault and battery on a family or household member, intimidation of a witness, and threat to commit a crime, to wit: assault and battery upon a public employee.
 
He was ordered to serve concurrent two and a half year sentences at the Berkshire County House of Correction on the strangulation, assault and battery, and intimidation of a witness charges. He was given a concurrent six-month sentence for the threat to commit a crime charge.
 
Crichlow assaulted a 32-year-old woman in Pittsfield on January 13 and January 14, 2016, and threatened a police officer on January 14, 2016.  Two counts of rape were dismissed by the state.
 
Cases heard before Judge Edward McDonough on Thursday, June 1.
 
Jacob Frusciente, 25, of Pittsfield had a not guilty plea entered on his behalf on a single count of possession of heroin with intent to distribute.
 
He was ordered to be held at the Berkshire County House of Correction on $2,500 cash or surety bail. The charge stems from the execution of a search warrant at his home on March 10, 2017.
 
Jovan Rodriguez, 20, of Pittsfield had not guilty pleas entered on his behalf on single counts of trafficking in cocaine, possession of a large capacity firearm during the commission of a felony, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, illegal possession of a large capacity weapon, illegal possession of a large capacity feeding device, illegal possession of a firearm, illegal possession of a loaded firearm, reckless endangerment of a child, and failure to stop for a police officer.
 
He was ordered to be held at the Berkshire County House of Correction on $20,000 cash or $200,000 surety bail. The charges stem from a motor vehicle stop in Pittsfield on April 17, 2017.
 
Jeremy Paul, 39, of Pittsfield had not guilty pleas entered on his behalf on two counts of illegal ownership of a firearm, two counts of improper storage of a firearm, and single counts of armed career felon, and possession of ammunition without a firearm identification card.
 
He was ordered to be held at the Berkshire County House of Correction on $10,000 cash or surety bail. The charges stem from the execution of a search warrant at his home on April 28, 2017.
 
Fabian Hernandez, 34, of Pittsfield had not guilty pleas entered on his behalf on two counts of improper storage of a firearm, and single counts of possession of a sawed-off shotgun, armed career felon, illegal ownership of a firearm, possession of ammunition without a firearm identification card, and possession of suboxone.
 
He was ordered to be held at the Berkshire County House of Correction on $50,000 cash or surety bail. The charges stem from the execution of a search warrant at his home on April 28, 2017.
 
Kayla Malloy, 29, of North Adams pleaded guilty to single counts of possession of heroin with intent to distribute, and conspiracy to violate drug laws.
 
She was ordered to serve six months of a one-year sentence at the Hampden County House of Correction and placed on probation for two years. The charges stem from a motor vehicle stop in North Adams on June 27, 2016.
 
Carey Pilot, 44, of Pittsfield had not guilty pleas entered on her behalf on single counts of trafficking in cocaine, possession of a large capacity firearm during the commission of a felony, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, illegal possession of a large capacity weapon, illegal possession of a large capacity feeding device, illegal possession of a firearm, and illegal possession of a loaded firearm.
 
She was ordered to be held at the Hampden County House of Correction on $10,000 cash or $100,000 surety bail. The charges stem from a motor vehicle stop in Pittsfield on April 17, 2017.
 
Benjamin Robertson, 21, of Pittsfield had a not guilty plea entered on his behalf on a single count of armed robbery while masked.
 
He was released on personal recognizance. Robertson is accused of robbing an employee of Domino's Pizza as he attempted to make a night deposit at Citizen's Bank in Pittsfield on May 8, 2017.
 
Deidra Walker, 30, of Port Jervis, N.Y. had a not guilty plea entered on her behalf on a single count of trafficking in heroin. 
 
She was ordered to be held at the Hampden County House of Correction on $10,000 cash or surety bail. Walker is accused of being in possession of the drug when she was arrested in Pittsfield on March 26, 2017.
 
Brian Baras, 30, of Canaan, Conn. pleaded guilty to a single count of possession of heroin with intent to distribute. 
 
He was ordered to serve two and a half years at the Berkshire County House of Correction. The charge stems from an incident in Sheffield on March 8, 2016.Sup
     

State Police Seek Information on Credit Card Fraud Suspects

The State Police Detective Unit assigned to Hampden District Attorney Anthony D. Gulluni's office is seeking the public's help in identifying three individuals authorities believe to be involved in numerous credit card fraud cases in Western and central Massachusetts, Connecticut, and possibly Rhode Island.

The credit card fraud took place in March 2017. The suspects traveled to numerous Walmart stores and used stolen credit card information to make fraudulent purchases worth thousands of dollars. The suspects traveled together in a white Ford expedition EL (extended length) SUV at the time, which may have been a rental car with possible Rhode Island or other out-of-state registration plates.

 

If you think you recognize any of these individuals in the photos, call the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit, (413) 505-5936, or utilize Text-a-Tip by texting the word CRIMES (2-7-4-6-3-7) and type the word SOLVE into the body of the message followed by your tip.

Photos of the alleged suspects and the vehicle of interest are included with this post.

 

 

     
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