DA RIPS BLUNDERS
Conley: Suspect in Southie slays didn’t fire on officers, some media reports were ‘flatly’ wrong
A fired-up Suffolk DA Daniel F. Conley ripped bogus media reports and an erroneous statement by police Commissioner William B. Evans that the man accused of slaying two beloved doctors in their Southie penthouse fired at officers before they shot him.
Conley said the press reports were “graphic and disturbing” in their description of the incident, containing some details he said were “flatly, incontrovertibly, wrong.” He did not elaborate.
“I can’t even begin to describe the heartbreak that those families are feeling today,” he said of the doctors’ loved ones who had to endure the gory details — many of them false.
“I do want the anonymous sources who provided that information to the press to know that you deeply hurt two grieving, grieving families,” Conley added, saying he was at the murder scene and saw for himself the real truth that only his office is equipped to share.
And in a rare public rebuke, Conley called statements by Evans that Bampumim “JJ” Teixeira, 30, shot at responding officers from a darkened hallway “inaccurate.” Evans made the comment at the crime scene late Friday night.
Conley attributed the blunder to a scene that was “very large and chaotic,” and said police officers were responding to reports of an armed intruder.
“The officers believed that this assailant either pointed or fired a weapon at them, in this dark hallway, and as a result they discharged their own firearms,” Conley said.
“I want to be clear that we are not drawing any negative connotations or conclusions to the propriety of these actions at this stage,” the DA said. “We are simply informing the public in order to correct the record.”
Conley said a bag found inside the penthouse contained a replica firearm or a BB gun; investigators don’t think it was in Teixeira’s hand when he was shot. At least one knife was found at the scene, Conley said.
The 5-foot-8-inch Teixeira
suffered gunshots to the left hand, abdomen and a leg. He was arraigned in a Tufts Medical Center hospital bed yesterday, during which an assistant district attorney repeated the mistake that there had been “an exchange of gunfire” during the incident.
Police spokesman Lt. Detective Michael McCarthy said Evans made it clear the information was preliminary when he relayed it at the scene.
“It was a crazy scene, and the commissioner was relaying information that was relayed to him,” McCarthy said. “As any investigation moves forward, preliminary information then becomes secondary information once we learn additional facts.”
McCarthy added that the fake weapon Teixeira had was actually a replica of a .357 Magnum and he was first seen “in a stance” appearing to be holding a gun.
Brad Bailey, a former federal and state prosecutor, said prosecutors might seek to clarify such details to protect a jury’s impression of the quality of their evidence, and to prevent late-stage disclosures that could advantage the defense.
“It appears the DA was trying to make sure the facts as recited sync up with ballistics evidence found at the scene,” Bailey said. “By getting out in front of things now and correcting the factual record up front, he is hoping to head off possible challenges down the line.”
It still remains unclear why Teixeira targeted Massachusetts Eye and Ear anesthesiologist Dr. Lina Bolanos, 38, and her fiance, Dr. Richard Field, 49, of North Shore Pain Management in Beverly.
Conley said “there is no evidence whatsoever at this stage to conclude that this defendant had a personal relationship with Dr. Bolanos or Dr. Field.”
“Nor is there currently any evidence to explain why he would attack them so viciously in their own home,” Conley said. “Murder defies rational explanation. Often times, it can never be explained, even when all the facts ... are known.”
Asked if Teixeira may have acquired a master key to the victims’ unit and if he had a prior position at a sister building, Conley said, “This is very early on in the investigation, and we are looking into that possibility ... about any type of employment that he may have had.”
Investigators also found a black backpack stuffed with, presumably, Bolanos’ jewelry by the front door, according to Assistant Suffolk District Attorney John Pappas. He said the backpack was sitting “in a remarkably conspicuous area.”
Both victims “were bound and both were deceased, having sustained obvious trauma,” Pappas said.
Boston Municipal Court Judge Michael C. Bolden ordered Teixeira, who is currently on probation for a 2016 larceny case, held without bail.
Prosecutors also said Field managed to text a friend for help before he was killed in the 11th-floor condo he shared with Bolanos in the luxurious Macallen Building on 141 Dorchester Ave. in South Boston.
Teixeira kept his eyes closed through the proceeding until finally nodding at the end and saying, “Thank you,” in a clear voice.