Malden cops say man took hockey stick honoring crash victims
A 53-year-old Hingham man is facing a larceny charge after stealing a hockey stick outside of Malden police headquarters meant to honor the victims of a deadly Canadian bus crash, police said.
William Iaconelli will be arraigned in Malden District Court Tuesday after attempting to take home a hockey stick set out to remember the lives lost in a tragic bus crash in Saskatchewan, Canada, on the evening of April 2, according to police.
The hockey stick, donated to the police station by the son of a Malden police officer, had the logo of the Humboldt Broncos junior hockey team. Sixteen people were killed and 13 injured in the accident, which stunned the hockey world.
Malden police said the hockey stick had been outside the police station for 44 days without incident as part of a “#putyourstickout” and “#sticksforhumboldt” movement that law enforcement and other public agencies were engaged in following the crash.
Iaconelli was seen on camera outside the police station Friday handling the stick before he was arrested, police said,
“He ‘tried out’ the stick, put it back, and walked away from the area only to return,” police said in a statement. “He once again walked back and forth by the stick, eventually grabbed it and immediately left the area.”
When approached by a Malden police officer, Iaconelli gave conflicting stories as to his reasoning for taking the stick, according to police. Iaconelli told police he knew about the Humboldt tragedy when asked, but said he didn’t follow the coverage because it was “too depressing,” police said.
The hockey stick will now be used as evidence in court proceedings against Iaconelli, police said.