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Thursday, may 15

Josh Lanier

Assistant Managing Editor

jlanier@dailyvoice.com

Josh Lanier started his reporting career in high school for his local newspaper. Many — many — years later, he’s still chasing leads for compelling stories. During his time writing for newspapers, magazines, and online publications, he’s covered everything from murderers to mommy bloggers, but his most interesting story is always the next one.

Josh Lanier's Contributions

Police & Fire

'Best Dad Ever' Turns Himself In For Killing Man With His Car In Chicopee: DA A 35-year-old Springfield man seemingly tried to impress a superior court judge by wearing his "Best Dad Ever" shirt during his arraignment on charges he drove over a Chicopee man last month and left him to die on the side of the road. Eric St. Andre is accused of crashing into 60-year-old Gary Turcotte just before 5 p.m. on Nov. 30 as he made his way through a crosswalk in the 900 block of Chicopee Street, the Hampden District Attorney Office's said. Paramedics rushed Turcotte to Baystate Medical Center, but doctors couldn't save his life. After weeks of investigation, officers got a wa…

12/22/2022

Obituaries

'A Heart That Shined Brightly': GoFundMe For Cambridge Woman Who Died At 35 Nearing Goal Just a little more than a month following the untimely death of Kristin Wheeler, her loved ones have nearly reached their goal to help her family. The Cambridge woman was only 35 when she died on Nov. 20. She left behind loving parents and siblings and a large community of friends. Some of them started a GoFundMe to help her family. The campaign is less than 10 percent away from its $30,000 goal. Related: Click Here To See Kristin Wheeler's GoFundMe "She was the kindest, most intelligent, most creative, thoughtful, driven, hardworking, and loving person," they wrote in the GoFundMe. "In …

12/22/2022

Police & Fire

Suspected Crack Dealer Shot At Chicopee Cops During Raid: Police Police said a suspected crack dealer shot at them as they tried to break down his front door during a raid this week. Austin Colson faces 14 weapon and drug charges stemming from the Tuesday, Dec. 20, raid at his Belcher Street apartment, Chicopee police said. Police officials said Chicopee narcotics officers and FBI agents with the gang task force knocked on Colson's door and announced their intentions, but after he refused to answer, they started to batter it down. That's when they heard a gunshot from inside the house, authorities said, and then the heavy footsteps of a man r…

12/21/2022

Police & Fire

Harvard-Educated Sleep Doctor Slept Well In Brookline Home He Bought Defrauding Patients: Feds A federal grand jury indicted a Brookline sleep doctor this week on charges that he ran multiple frauds and laundered hundreds of thousands of dollars to help him purchase a $1.6 million home in the toney town. Dr. Pankaj Merchia, 49, faces three counts of money laundering and one count of health care fraud stemming from the alleged schemes, the US Attorney's Office said. The indictment lays out the two alleged frauds. In one, Merchia continued to bill patients' insurance companies for monthly rentals of CPAP and BiPap machines — breathing devices used to treat sleep …

12/21/2022

Police & Fire

Central Massachusetts Couple Accused Of Sex Trafficking Victim To Multiple States: Feds A Worcester husband and wife potentially face life in prison after federal investigators said they forced a person into prostitution and trafficked them to multiple states for sex. Kiersten Soto, 29, and Moises Soto, 30, were arrested on Friday, Dec. 16, after investigators said they "used force, fraud, and coercion to traffic a victim for commercial sex in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Rhode Island" from February through May 2022, the US Attorney for Massachusetts said. Not much more is known about the allegations as the indictment is sealed. The Sotos a…

12/21/2022

Police & Fire

Gunman, Victims All Sentenced In Hadley Walmart Shooting: DA A shooting at a Hadley Walmart bathroom in 2021 has landed the confessed gunman and his two victims in prison, authorities announced on Wednesday, Dec. 21. Wilmer Alvarez-Vargas, 27, of Chicopee, has been held without bail since the Aug. 22, 2021, shooting that seriously wounded two teenagers, Northwestern District Attorney's Office said. A judge sentenced him to four years in state prison after Alvarez-Vargas pleaded guilty to two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury; unlawful possession of a firearm; unlawful pos…

12/21/2022

Police & Fire

Teens Say TikTok Trend Led Them To Rob Melrose Mail Carrier At Gunpoint: DA Two teenagers who police arrested this week and charged with robbing a mail carrier at gun and knifepoint in Melrose said they got the idea from a TikTok. The United States Postal Inspection Service said two 16-year-old Somerville boys were responsible for the midday Dec. 10 robbery. Their names were withheld because of their ages. Investigators said the boys were sitting on the steps of a home on Orchard Lane when the USPS carrier pulled up around 3 p.m. As the woman was walking back to the truck after delivering mail to a home on the street, the boys sidled up and showed …

12/21/2022

Police & Fire

More Charges For Couple Who Ran $1M Organized Crime Ring Out Of Video Store: Worcester DA A 68-year-old Lancaster man is accused of employing an army of drug addicts and professional shoplifters to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of merchandise from stores across Worcester County and reselling the items out of a Leominster strip mall, authorities said. A 43-year-old Fitchburg woman is accused of helping him organize the scheme. John F Duplease Jr. and Penny Williams were arrested last year, but the charges against them continue to pile up. A grand jury this week indicted Duplease on charges of being the leader of an organized retail theft enterprise, aggravated orga…

12/21/2022

Police & Fire

Woman, 25, And Her Dog Killed While Taking Walk In West Springfield: Police A 25-year-old woman was hit by a car and killed while walking her dog Tuesday afternoon in West Springfield, authorities said. The woman, whose name was not released, was walking near the intersection of Piper Rd and Monastery Ave just after 5:30 p.m. when a car crashed into her, West Springfield police said. Responders rushed her to a nearby hospital, but doctors could not save her life. The woman's dog was also killed in the wreck. The driver remained on the scene and was cooperating with investigators. No charges have been filed.

12/21/2022

Police & Fire

Touch Of Health Owner In Swampscott Accused Of Indecently Touching Patient: DA A Swampscott chiropractor turned himself over to police this week after a patient accused him of indecently assaulting her during a session earlier this year. Dr. Ilan S. Amar, who owns A Touch of Health, was arraigned Tuesday, Dec. 20, on charges of indecent assault and battery and assault and battery, the Essex County District Attorney said. The judge released him on personal recognizance, but Amar cannot practice medicine or have any contact with the alleged victim in the case. A 31-year-old woman told police she visited Amar at his 444 Humphrey Street offices on Dec. 5,…

12/20/2022

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