Massachusetts

A two-car crash in Stoughton, Massachusetts, early Wednesday left a driver dead and two other people hospitalized, authorities said.

The crash took place on Turnpike Street near a Dunkin’, not far from Route 24, about 6:15 a.m., according to Stoughton police and the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office.

A Quincy woman told investigators was driving her Toyota Highlander home from an overnight shift at a local hotel when the SUV and a Cadillac collided, according to prosecutors.

Inside the Cadillac were two men from Pennsylvania, who were both rushed to the Boston Medical Center, officials said. The apparent driver, Michael Unman, a 59-year-old from Pennsylvania, was pronounced dead, while the other man had serious injuries.

No charges or citations were issued as of 1:20 p.m. Authorities didn’t share the latest conditions of the passenger in the Cadillac or the driver of the Toyota.

Part of Turnpike Street, which is also Route 139, remained closed Wednesday afternoon due to wires on the road downed by a vehicle in the crash hitting a telephone pole, authorities said.

Police had said that traffic on Route 139 was being detoured down Maple Street to Page Street.

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A motorcyclist was critically injured in a crash in New Bedford, Massachusetts, Tuesday night, and the driver of the other vehicle involved is now facing drunken driving and other charges.

New Bedford police said they responded to the area of Route 18 and Division Street around 9 p.m. Tuesday for a report of a motorcyclist who was unresponsive after a crash. The responding officer performed CPR on the motorcyclist until paramedics arrived and took over.

The motorcyclist, whose name has not been released by police, remains in critical condition.

Police said their investigation showed that 25-year-old Joseph Louis Leon Jr., of New Bedford, was driving a black BMW with four passengers — including two children ages 4 and 9 — on Route 18 north at a high rate of speed, swerving in and out of traffic. When the car reached the Division Street intersection, it rear-ended the motorcycle, which was stopped at a red light.

Leon was arrested and charged with operating under the influence of liquor causing serious bodily injury, child endangerment while operating while under the influence, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, reckless endangerment to children under 18 and possession of an open container of alcohol in a motor vehicle.

No further details were released.

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Investigators looking into the deaths of a woman and her baby in North Andover, Massachusetts, have shared few details about what’s suspected to be a murder-suicide involving a knife.

The Essex County district attorney said Tuesday that the community is “still struggling to comprehend what went so terribly wrong” in the deaths of Jennifer T. Paez and her son, Valentino, and investigators haven’t said why they believe Paez would have killed her child. But court records on Paez shed some light on her previous interactions with law enforcement, and paint a picture of someone with mental health struggles.

On Dec. 10, 2022, she was arrested on suspicion of assault on a family member — her sister said she was being aggressive at her mother, and that both were afraid for their safety. The sister told officers, according to a police report, that Paez had bipolar disorder and wasn’t taking her medication, leading to erratic and aggressive behavior like shooting the family cat with a Nerf gun and vandalizing property.

Five days later, Paez was arrested on charges including reckless driving, failing to stop for police and disorderly conduct. Police said she had stopped her SUV on Broadway in Lawrence, causing a traffic jam, and then speeding away at 50-60 mph when officers went to investigate.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or chat live at 988lifeline.org. You can also visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional support.

When she eventually pulled over, more than half a mile away, Paez tried to kick officers, then yelled profanities at and threatened to fight police, according to the arrest report. One officer at police headquarters recognized her from previous encounters and said she had tried to die by suicide from jumping out of a moving vehicle.

Paez was evaluated at a hospital and eventually had a judge order that, if she complied with her medications and other pre-trial probation conditions, the charges would be dismissed. That would have taken place this Oct. 3.

Paez also had a history of driving offenses in Lawrence. In August 2009, she was behind the wheel in a car crash on Newton and found to have been driving without a license; she received probation. In September 2017, Paez was arrested for allegedly driving an uninsured vehicle on a suspended license in Lawrence; the charges were dismissed.

Paez and Valentino were found at a house on Turnpike Street Monday. Details were initially sparse, but investigators said Tuesday that they were went to the home after receiving a 911 call about 5:15 p.m. and found both the mother and the son with wounds, apparently caused by a knife.

The mother was pronounced dead at the home, while Valentino was taken to Lawrence General Hospital and pronounced dead at 6:30 p.m., authorities said.

Residents who live nearby have said the deaths were a shock.

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A Washington, D.C., man was sentenced Tuesday in federal court in Boston to stealing $32,000 worth of merchandise from a Gucci store in Massachusetts back in 2021.

Linworth Hayes Crawford III, 30, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to eight months in federal prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. He must also pay $32,000 in restitution to the Gucci store at the Wrentham Village Premium Outlets. He had pleaded not guilty in February to one count of conspiracy to transport stolen goods in interstate commerce and one count of interstate transportation of stolen goods.

Prosecutors say on the night of Sept. 16, 2021, Crawford and several other co-defendants traveled from the Washington, D.C., area to the Wrentham outlets and smashed the glass front door of the Gucci store, stealing $32,000 in high-end merchandise, including handbags, duffle bags, backpacks and sunglasses.

The day after the theft, one of the co-defendants allegedly posted on his Instagram account that he had Gucci bags available for sale. Images of the bags appeared to be identical to the ones stolen from the Wrentham store.

Crawford also took responsibility for a second, similar burglary at a Prada store in Dawsonville, Georgia, where another $37,000 in marchandise was stolen.

One of Crawford’s co-defendants, Nathaniel Owens, pleaded guilty in April 2024 and is awaiting sentencing, prosecutors said.

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