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A 33-year-old New Bedford man has been charged with Manslaughter in connection to last Friday’s fatal shooting of Keven Rocha on Margin Street in New Bedford, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III announced.
Ricardo Velez-Gonzalez was arrested Wednesday afternoon in Eastham by members of District Attorney Quinn’s Massachusetts State Police Unit, Eastham Police, Massachusetts State Police STOP Team, the state police’s Violent Fugitive Apprehension Section and the state police’s D-Troop CAT Team.
On July 21, police and prosecutors sought and were granted an arrest warrant for the defendant out of New Bedford District Court on a charge of Manslaughter. On July 22, investigators received reliable information that’s the defendant was staying at a friend’s apartment in Eastham. After conducting surveillance on the apartment, investigators confirmed the defendant was inside and quickly took him into custody without incident.
The defendant was held in jail overnight and was arraigned today in New Bedford District Court on the Manslaughter charge. During his arraignment today, Assistant District Attorney Gillian Kirsch requested that the defendant be subjected to a dangerousness hearing and a bail revocation hearing. Judge Paul Pino agreed with ADA Kirsch’s request and ordered the defendant held without bail pending the results of dangerousness and bail revocation hearings scheduled to take place on July 30.
The bail revocation request is based on several pending criminal cases against the defendant out of New Bedford District Court and Falmouth District Court.
Due to a court-imposed impoundment order currently in place on this case and the surrounding ongoing investigation into the fatal shooting of Mr. Rocha, 25, of New Bedford, this office is prohibited from commenting further and was unable to announce the charges until the defendants was arraigned in open court.
New Bedford Police, Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to the district attorney’s office and Homicide Unit prosecutors continue to actively investigate the fatal shooting which occurred between 4:00-5:00 am on July 17.
New Bedford Police responded to 17 Margin Street early that morning and discovered Rocha had been fatally shot inside of the multi-family building.
