Three defendants – one from Michigan – have been charged for their roles in a non-fatal shooting at the corner of Broadway and Cary Avenue last Wednesday, April 16.
It was one incident in what has been a very busy week for police.
Suffolk prosecutors arraigned two men and a woman in Chelsea District Court after Chelsea police arrested them Wednesday night for their roles in a shooting that left an 18-year-old injured.
Rafael Leoner-Aguirre, 18, of Chelsea was arraigned on charges of armed assault with intent to murder, unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, carrying a loaded firearm, and three counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
Kevin Ayala, 20, of Chelsea, was charged with misleading a police officer and two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.
Viky Martinez-Chacon, 23, of Pontiac, Michigan, was arraigned on a charge of misleading a police officer.
Assistant District Attorney Myriam Feliz requested bail for Leoner-Aguirre of $100,000; $50,000 for Ayala; and $10,000 for Martinez-Chacon. She also requested that each defendant be ordered to wear a GPS monitor, remain in Massachusetts, and stay away and have no contact with the victims and witnesses.
Judge Michael Nestor set Leoner-Aguirre’s bail at $25,000; $2,500 for Ayala; and released Martinez-Chacon on her own recognizance. He ordered each of the defendants to have no contact with the victims and witnesses.
According to prosecutors, Leoner-Aguirre and Ayala were among a group of several males who attacked two 17- and 18-year-old men in the area of Broadway and Cary Avenue shortly after 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 16. During that altercation, Leoner-Aguirre allegedly pulled out a gun and shot the 18-year-old victim in the left hip and the group fled, prosecutors said.
Chelsea Police received a description of the vehicle in which men fled and learned that the shooter was wearing all white. Officers quickly spotted the vehicle as Leoner-Aguirre, dressed in all white, exited in the area of Bellingham Street and Eastern Avenue. He was taken into custody. The victim was transported to Massachusetts General Hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.
Inside Leoner-Aguirre’s backpack, police discovered a Beretta .380 caliber semiautomatic handgun that was warm to the touch, prosecutors said. The gun was cocked but had no ammunition in the clip; an unspent .380 caliber round was found on the ground near where he was taken into custody.
Ayala and Martinez-Chacon were both present in the vehicle when it was stopped by police and made inconsistent statements to police that prosecutors allege were intended to stymie the investigation into the shooting.
As with many cases of violent crime in Chelsea, Chelsea Police detectives are working with State Police detectives assigned to the Suffolk DA’s office to gather additional facts and evidence in the Broadway shooting.
The Broadway shooting comes on the heels of another drive-by shooting on Chester Avenue the previous day, April 15, around 1:30 a.m.
Additionally, several neighborhood reports specified a shooting incident at the corner of Maverick and Shawmut Street where more than five rounds were fired into a house on that tight corner. That said, Chelsea Police told the Record that the report was incorrect and no shooting incident happened there last Wednesday, April 16.
Anyone with further information on any criminal incident may contact Chelsea Police detectives at 617-466-4843 or the Suffolk County State Police Detective Unit at 617-727-8817. Tipsters who wish to remain anonymous may also call the Chelsea Police CrimeStoppers tip line at 617-466-4880, text the word CHELSEA and their information to TIP411 (847411), or submit information online at www.ChelseaPolice.com.