WORCESTER — A young man and woman were arrested in Gardner on Friday in connection with the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old boy.
According to the Worcester Police Department, on the evening of Feb. 23, 2024, Worcester police officers and members of and the Violent Fugitive Apprehension Squad located and subsequently arrested Kidam Oquendo, 21, of Wawecus Road and Alexis Medeiros, 18, of Chandler Street, in Gardner.
According to police, on Feb. 12, 2024, at about 3:16 a.m., Worcester police were dispatched to the area of Shannon Street following a ShotSpotter activation. (According to its website, ShotSpotter is gunshot detection technology that uses sophisticated acoustic sensors to detect, locate and alert law enforcement agencies to area shootings.)
When officers arrived on scene, they found evidence that shots had been fired, but couldn’t locate a victim.
Officers then began to check local hospitals for potential gunshot victims and located a seventeen-year-old male victim who had been pronounced deceased. The name of the victim has not been released.
Oquendo was charged with Armed Assault to Murder, Attempted Assault and Battery by Firearm, Possession of a Firearm with no License to Carry, Possession of Ammunition without an FID Card, Discharging a Firearm within 500 Feet of a Dwelling, and Possession of a Firearm during a Felony. Medeiros was charged with Accessory After the Fact and Obstruction of Justice.
The investigation into the shooting is ongoing.
If you have any information about this investigation, you can send an anonymous text message to Worcester police at 274637 TIPWPD, you can also send an anonymous web-based message at worcesterma.gov/police. Calls can also be made to the Worcester Police Detective Bureau at (508) 799-8651.
