Courtesy Photo/Leominster Police Department: Godswill Dineyah
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LEOMINSTER — On Thursday, Oct. 13 at 10:35 p.m., Officers Michael Dingman and Justin Costa of the Leominster Police Department were dispatched to a residence on Mooreland Avenue following a report of a man – later identified as 19-year-old Godswill Dineyah – attacking both his mother and brother.
According to Officer Dingman’s Narrative for the incident, dispatch could hear yelling in the background of the 911 call.
When the officers arrived on scene, they encountered five people in the residence, Dineyah, his mother, stepfather, brother, and sister.
“I separated the parties with Officer Costa and spoke to the reporting party, [Dineyah’s brother], first. [Dineyah’s brother] stated he heard yelling happening downstairs and went to check on his mother. He noticed Godswill throwing cans of Sunkist at his mother,” wrote Officer Dingman in his Narrative for the incident. “Godswill noticed him and went after him violently. Godswill punched [his brother] in the back of the neck then strangled him using his right forearm. [Godswill’s brother] stated when his brother ran at him he turned around to block himself, which was how Godswill attacked him from behind.”
According to Officer Dingman, Dineyah’s brother said he was able to break free when his mother intervened. He then called 911.
“[Dineyah’s brother] stated he had neck pain and that his breathing was interrupted abnormally making it hard to breathe during the attack,” wrote Officer Dingman in his Narrative. “I radioed for an ambulance to check him out. Leominster Fire responded but he declined medical attention. I did not see any marks on [his] neck.”
According to Officer Dingman, when he spoke with Dineyah separately, he said that his brother has been driving a car that was given to him by his stepfather while drunk, crashing it.
“Godswell stated no one is doing anything about it so he addressed the issue with his mother,” wrote Officer Dingman in his Narrative.
Dineyah added that his mother then became upset and threw cans at him, hitting him. That’s when he noticed his brother silently staring at him from the doorway.
“Godswill became upset and punched [his brother] and strangled him without any exchange of words between them beforehand,” wrote Officer Dingman in his Narrative.
Meanwhile, Dineyah’s mother told Officer Dingman that when Dineyah approached her that day to address his brother’s use of the car, she explained that her significant other had given the car to both of them, not to him exclusively. She added that on a daily basis, Dineyah has been harassing his brother over his utilization of the vehicle.
“[Dineyah’s mother] told Godswill to stop harassing his brother and that the vehicle belongs to both of them,” wrote Officer Dingman in his Narrative. “[She added that] Godswill will have to leave the house if he continues this behavior toward [his brother]. Godswill became upset and threw four empty Sunkist soda cans at her, hitting her. She became upset and threw one back at him. [Dineyah’s brother] came down to see what the commotion was all about when suddenly Godswill attacked him. Godswill let go and [his brother] called 911.”
Dineyah’s sister corroborated this story, adding that she heard her mother scream and went downstairs to see Godswill strangling his brother. After hearing this, Officer Dingman decided to arrest Dineyah.
“At this point in time, I determined Godswill to be the dominant aggressor. I asked him if he had any weapons on his person which he did not,” wrote Officer Dingman in his Narrative. “I placed him in handcuffs, double locked them, and checked for tightness. Officer Costa transported him back to the station for booking.”
Dineyah was charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (for throwing soda cans at and otherwise making contact with his mother), strangulation or suffocation (for placing his forearm on his brother’s neck), and assault and battery (for punching his brother’s neck).
Dineyah’s bail was set at $40.
He was arraigned in Leominster District Court on Oct. 14.
He is scheduled to appear in court again on Dec. 2 for a pretrial hearing.
Disclaimer: If you are wondering why the incident in this story was from September,, that’s because I had to file a FOIA request to get the Personnel Narratives for the incident. FOIAs are time consuming.
