BOSTON
Firefighter hospitalized after blaze
A Boston firefighter was taken to the hospital Saturday afternoon after suffering chest pains fighting a three-alarm fire at 11 Ellis St. in Hyde Park that displaced seven people, according to Boston Fire Department spokesman Steve MacDonald. The fire started in the back of the home, MacDonald said, and climbed up the walls. The cause is being investigated. Seven residents escaped, and the Red Cross was providing them with assistance, MacDonald said.
HULL
Man on beach arrested on gun charge
An Abington man was arrested on gun charges Friday after police found him on Nantasket Beach with an open bottle of whiskey and possessing several weapons, according to the State Police. Paul Martell, 55, was charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm, carrying a firearm with ammunition, carrying a dangerous weapon, and illegal consumption of alcohol on state property, police said in a statement Saturday. Martell was being held on $240 bail at the State Police barracks in Norwell. He is due to be arraigned Monday in Hingham District Court, the release stated.
QUINCY
Man faces charges in $1m fraud
A Quincy man was arrested Friday and charged with allegedly using counterfeit cashier’s checks to defraud victims, including a law firm, of at least $1 million, according to the US attorney’s office. Manuel Ponce Vazquez, 59, was charged with one count of mail fraud, according a press release issued by the office of US Attorney Carmen Ortiz. Vasquez is alleged to have started to defraud people in August 2013 by convincing them to forward a portion of a counterfeit check to a bank account he opened using an alias, the statement said.
NEWBURYPORT
Speeding motorcyclists arrested
Two motorcyclists were arrested on Friday night after a chase through downtown that resulted in damage to other vehicles and injuries to one suspect. Clifford M. Jones Jr., 27, and Edwin M. Mendez, 24, both of Haverhill, were part of a group of six motorcyclists that police attempted to stop for speeding around 5:45 p.m. in the area of 551 Merrimac St., according to a statement by Newburyport police spokesman John Guilfoil. Three of the motorcyclists stopped. The others — Jones, Mendez, and a third operator — fled, “swerving in and out of traffic and passing motorists on both sides of the road,’’ Guilfoil said.
WEST HAVEN, CONN.
Teen charged with threat over prom
Police have charged a West Haven teenager with threatening to kill a Stratford girl after she declined a request to be his prom date. Eighteen-year-old Trevon Malik Avery was arrested Friday on charges including threatening, harassment, and breach of peace. The Connecticut Post reported that a judge ordered Avery under house arrest, except when he has to go to school. Police say Avery sent the 17-year-old girl threatening texts — including one with a picture of him pointing a gun — after she broke up with him and declined his prom invitation Thursday. Police say Avery told them he was only joking and the gun wasn’t real. In 2014, a Milford teenager fatally stabbed a 16-year-old girl after she refused his prom invitation. (AP)
ROCHESTER, N.H.
One dead, one hurt in Route 16 crash
One man was killed and another suffered life-threatening injuries in a motor vehicle crash off Route 16 in Rochester, N.H. Friday night, authorities said. Lawrence Douglas, 37, and James Gosselin, 54, both of Rochester, were traveling southbound on Route 16 at 8:37 p.m. when Douglas lost control of his Subaru Forester and collided with a concrete barrier, according to the New Hampshire State Police. Douglas was ejected from the vehicle. He was taken by MedFlight to Maine Medical Center in Portland with life-threatening injuries. Gosselin was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
