SOMERVILLE — On Monday, August 5, 2024, at approximately 8:50 a.m., Officers Igor Bitencourt and Chris Fusco of the Somerville Police Department were dispatched to a work trailer outside Clarendon Hill Towers, a HUD apartment complex at 1366 Broadway, following a 911 call reporting a fight.
(The account and quotations in this article were sourced from a summary of the incident written by Officer Bitencourt in the Somerville Police Department’s weekly arrest log and do not reflect any political or personal opinion of News Link Live, which is strictly a business entity.)
“Upon my arrival on the scene, the suspect, identified as Thomas Connelly, was being searched by Officer [Jamey] Thompson,” Officer Bitencourt said. “After Officer Thompson finished his search, I proceeded to detain Mr. Connelly by placing him in handcuffs. The handcuffs were double-locked with enough space to avoid cutting off circulation to his hands. While handcuffing was being done, I could smell a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage emanating from Mr. Connelly, he was also sweating profusely and very unsteady on his feet.”
Officer Keighla McAloney, Officer Michael Cleary, Officer Alex Lorenti, and Officer Matthew Lorizio were also on scene.
Officer Bitencourt approached the victim, a tall white male wearing a yellow, high-visibility vest.
“[The victim] explained that while he and his coworkers were having a meeting inside a trailer, the suspect, Mr. Connelly, approached the trailer and started banging on the door, yelling to be let inside,” Officer Bitencourt said. “[The victim] told his work partner, identified as [name redacted], not to open the door, but the banging continued, eventually causing [the victim] to open the door. Immediately upon opening the door, Mr. Connelly reportedly pushed [the victim] to gain access to the building while screaming, ‘I’m going to kill you.’”
According to police, Thomas Connelly, 43, resides at 650 Mixed Street, Apt. 5G, in Hamden, Connecticut.
The victim stated that after Connelly pushed him, he held Connelly against the wall to restrain him.
“At that point, Mr. Connelly pushed him off and proceeded to take out pepper spray and sprayed [the victim] in the face, while also spraying the side of the trailer located to the left side of the door,” Officer Bitencourt said. “Afterwards, Mr. Connelly was outside and threw an object through the window, breaking the glass, which caused glass to hit [the victim]. While speaking to [the victim], I observed that the side of his face was indeed orange from pepper spray. I also noticed a stream of orange liquid on the side of the trailer which from my experience would be consistent with pepper spray. I also noticed the lingering odor of pepper spray inside the trailer.”
According to Officer Bitencourt, Connelly informed police that he went to the trailer and was banging on the door to be let in. When asked about the window, Connelly said he punched it.
“When speaking to [the victim] more in depth, he stated Mr. Connelly had to be spoken to for smoking on the property and that was why he was upset and going to the trailer,” Officer Bitencourt said.
“[The victim] is the owner of the trailer and stated that he will be fixing the window himself.”
Both the victim and Connelly declined medical treatment.
Connelly was charged with:
- Assault & Battery with a Dangerous Weapon
- Malicious Wanton Defacement of Property
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