FITCHBURG – The victim who was shot to death on Milk Street early Tuesday night has been identified as Roy Rivera, a 24-year-old Fitchburg man.
At a Wednesday morning press conference at the Fitchburg Police Station, Worcester District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr. said Rivera, of 66 Fairmount St., was killed in what appears to be a drug deal gone wrong.
“Anytime there’s a shooting, yes, we’re obviously concerned, but it appeared that the parties were part of an illegal drug transaction, so it wasn’t random violence within the neighborhood,” said Early. “It was not random violence. It was targeted violence.”
This is the first murder in city since 2013, said Early.
There have been no arrests in the case. Early declined to comment further on the details of the investigation, saying it was “still very active and ongoing.”
Rivera was shot around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday on the corner of Milk Street and Allston Place.
One bystander said she witnessed two white vehicles pull up behind each other on the corner of the two roads. Rivera exited his vehicle and walked to the car where the shooter was, and they spoke for about three minutes before the shooter fired his weapon from the car, the witness said.
Rivera staggered back to his vehicle and drove south on Milk Street, while the shooter sped away in the opposite direction.
Rivera did not make it far. When police arrived on the scene, they found him “slumped over the steering wheel,” said Early, about three or four blocks away from where he was shot.
Officers urgently pulled Rivera from the driver’s seat and laid him on his back on Milk Street. One officer could be seen vigorously pumping Rivera’s chest in an effort to resuscitate him.
A pool of blood slowly spread around the victim as officers tried to save his life.
When paramedics arrived several minutes later, one of the officers frantically yelled for them to hurry. First-responders continued to work on the man in the street as detectives wearing shirts and ties began to show up.
Police cordoned off a section of the street with yellow crime-scene tape as neighbors, several of whom had just arrived home from work, gathered to witness the commotion. At about 7:15, paramedics placed the man on a stretcher and whisked him away in an ambulance to HealthAlliance
Hospital in Leominster, where he was pronounced dead of an apparent gunshot wound, said Early.
The state medical examiner will conduct an autopsy Wednesday, said Early. Investigators working on the case include State and Fitchburg police, State Police chemists, and the State Police K-9 Unit.
One witness, who declined to give her name, said she was inside her home, filling out a job application, when she heard three gunshots. She looked outside and saw the immediate aftermath of the shooting.
She described the incident – which happened directly in front of her home – as a “scary” situation.
Harold Mateo is a real-estate broker who has remodeled several homes on Milk Street. He lives in a home near the site of the shooting. He said he is frustrated by the amount of drug dealing in the neighborhood in recent years.
He believes the city has a lot to offer, but said crime has made it difficult to attract homebuyers.
“I know the city and the police department have budget constraints, but this is one of those areas that if they don’t put it in check soon, it’s probably going to get out of control,” he said. “I’m hoping that they do something about it.”
Mateo, 33, said he has considered putting cameras on his house to monitor activity in the neighborhood. He said it is fortunate that no innocent bystanders were injured Tuesday night.
“That could have easily hit any child running around here, walking their dog,” he said.
Anyone with information on the shooting can contact the Fitchburg Police at 978-345-9653 or the State Police at 508-832-9124.
Follow Chris Camire on Twitter @chriscamire.
