One man arrested and another summonsed to court after violent encounter involving bat and knife

FITCHBURG » Police arrested a city man on Sunday after learning he had used a baseball bat to strike his roommate in the head after the roommate stabbed him, according police and court documents.

Police were called to Myrtle Avenue on Sunday on a report of a disturbance between two men involving a baseball bat and knife, the reporting officer said.

When officers arrived at the residence they first noticed blood as they went inside and spoke with Eliacin Elius, 65, of Myrtle Avenue, who had a laceration on his head and shoulder and a small cut on one finger, the officer reported.

Elius told the officers that he had gotten into an argument with his roommate, Jean Pierre, 59, of the same address, which became physical and Pierre grabbed a baseball bat and started swinging it at him, striking him in the head and then Elius grabbed a knife

and lunged at Pierre in an attempt to defend himself, stabbing him under the arm, the officer reported.

Because of the severity of the injuries, Elius was immediately transported to the Umass Medical Center in Worcester for treatment, the officer reported, noting that when he spoke with staff there and they conveyed to him that Elius was in stable condition, but would be admitted. His current status is unknown.

There was woman in the residence who told officers she heard the two fighting and when she came out of her room, Pierre had the bat and Elius the knife and “they were going at it,” the officer reported.

There was another man in the residence who heard the fight, but didn’t see it, but when he did encounter the two, he took the knife away from Elius “so he did not witness a murder,” the officer reported.

The officer then spoke to Pierre who told him that he was cooking his lunch when Elius came into the kitchen and began saying insulting things about his mother, which sparked the argument, the officer reported.

At that point he said Elius grabbed the knife and stabbed him, so Pierre left the kitchen back to his bedroom, grabbed a bat and went after Elius striking him in an attempt to get him to drop the knife, the officer reported.

The officer asked Pierre why he just didn’t stay in his room and lock the door, to which Pierre responded that Elius wanted to kill him and he had the right to protect himself, the officer reported.

While EMS was at the scene, Pierre was treated for the knife wound, but declined to go the hospital, the officer reported.

As a result of the incident,

Pierre was arrested and charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon on a person over 60 and assault and battery, according to court documents.

When arraigned, Pierre, who pleaded not guilty, was released on

personal recognizance, ordered to stay away from Elius and to return to court on July 13 for a pretrial hearing, according to court documents.

The officer also charged Elius with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and assault and battery, and noted he would be summonsed to court on the charges.