Suspect charged in double murder
Police arrest Lincoln man accused of killing Manville’s Mark and Kim Dupre
LINCOLN — It might have seemed that the most grievous threats facing Mark and Kimberly Dupre were Mark’s ongoing health issues, but in the end it wasn’t illness that brought death to the Dupres’ door – it was a neighbor.
Less than five hours after police began investigating the double homicide that claimed the Dupres’ lives, they arrested Timothy McQuesten, charging him with two counts of first-degree murder for killing the couple.
Detective Capt. Philip Gould said the couple, both in their 60s, were bludgeoned to death. Gould did not elaborate but police seized a crowbar and a hammer from McQuesten’s car and bloody shoes from his home.
McQuesten, 49, lives a couple of blocks from 125 Main St., in the Manville section, where police found the Dupres shortly before 8:30 a.m. Thursday after investigating a report of a noisy disturbance. The two were lying on the floor, unresponsive – Kimberly was already dead, while Mark died after being transported to Rhode Island Hospital.
McQuesten was said to be an acquaintance of Kimberly Dupre who showed up at her home unexpectedly on Thursday and murdered the couple – for reasons that remain a mystery.
Though Gould said police have ample evidence to charge McQuesten with the homicides, investigators have not yet identified a motive for an act of such heinous brutality.
A resident of Summer Street, McQuesten’s first contact with police took place not at his home, but on a nearby stretch of the Blackstone River Bikeway, at about 12:30 p.m. Thursday. It was a call from McQuesten himself that led to his arrest on the bike path, according to Gould, who said McQuesten told officers he wanted to talk them after seeing a news story on TV about the deaths.
By then, Gould said, McQuesten was already a “person of interest.”
“I don’t think he knew it then, no,” said Gould. McQuesten made incriminating statements after being transported to headquarters, but Gould said, “In no way, shape or form was it a confession.”
With assistance from the Rhode Island State Police Mobile Crime Laboratory, the Lincoln Police Department began investigating the deaths after a neighbor reported “some loud noises” coming from the Dupres’ ground floor apartment. Gould said the focus on McQuesten was the result of “a lot of credible leads, evidence, information and witnesses” that were identified very quickly.
McQuesten was held overnight at Lincoln police headquarters before being transported Friday morning to Third District Court in Warwick for arraignment on the homicide charges. He is now held without bail at the Adult Correctional Institutions and the presiding justice in the case ordered him to appear for a competency hearing on Jan. 28 – his next scheduled court appearance.
The judiciary’s web indicates McQuesten has no prior
criminal history.
According to his social media, McQuesten studied special education in college and has worked in a number of group homes in the area, which may be how he came to know Kimberly Dupre.
Speaking to reporters on the sidewalk opposite the Dupre residence as investigators were collecting evidence on Thursday, Marie Picchi of Cumberland said she was a close friend of the Dupres and had met Kimberly years earlier while they were both working in a group home.
“They were good people, the both of them,” said Picchi. “She would give you the shirt off her back.”
Picchi came to the crime scene looking for information about her friends after she saw a news story about the deaths at 125 Main St. and recognized the address as that of the Dupres.
Mark was struggling with a crushing array of health issues, including problems with his liver, kidneys and anxiety, Picchi said. He developed a case of the shingles recently that left him in constant pain.
With all the stress he was facing, Mark’s anxiety sometimes got the better of him, but he was holding out hope for a liver transplant, Picchi said.
Through all of it, Kimberly had become her husband’s primary caregiver – her job.
“I spoke to her everyday,” said Picchi. “Either I’d call her or she’d call me.”
Though they didn’t get out much anymore, Picchi said the Dupres were big music fans and used to love hearing live rhythm n’ blues at Chan’s in Woonsocket.
Kimberly Dupre had lived at 125 Main St. for many years, living on the ground floor of the massive tenement, which she inherited from her grandmother, according to Picchi.
As the police spoke to neighbors about the Dupres, they heard a number of sentiments like those expressed by Picchi.
“Everybody we’ve talked to say they’re really good people,” said Gould.
As the investigation was developing, Gould said he couldn’t reveal that police were already focused on a possible suspect, but he emphasized on Friday that the killings were not a random act and that residents of the normally sleepy village of Manville needn’t worry about a predator roaming in their midst. He expressed his gratitude to the state police for their assistance, and also to “the residents of Manville for their cooperation during this investigation.”