Grand jury indictments for September include manslaughter charge for Merrimack man

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Hillsborough County Superior Court South. File Photo

NASHUA, NH  – A Merrimack man, accused of driving drunk and causing the death of his passenger when he crashed his vehicle, was indicted for manslaughter and other offenses.

A Hillsborough County Superior Court Southern District grand jury issued the indictment against Kyle Freeman, 24, of 147 Turkey Hill Road, Merrimack. He also was indicted for aggravated driving while intoxicated; operating after being certified a habitual offender, and two counts of disobeying a police officer, motor vehicle accident and death resulting.

According to the indictments and police, on April 22, 2024, Freeman, in an attempt to elude police, drove the wrong way on Somerset Parkway at a high rate of speed with his headlights off, when he crossed over the median to avoid a head-on collision.  He then accelerated past officers and, a short time later, hit various objects before going airborne and crashing in the parking lot of 402 Amherst St.  Both he and his passenger, Brandee LaBarge, 23, of Manchester, were thrown from his Nissan Altima, according to police.  She later died at a hospital while he was air-flighted to Boston for treatment of serious injuries.

The grand jury issued 137 indictments. Among those indicted were:  

  • Remi Berrera, 36, of 82 Harbor Ave., kidnapping, criminal restraint and witness tampering.  On May 25, 2024, acting in concert with Shanaya Scott, and with the purpose to commit a robbery, Berera is accused of pulling C.D. away from a window, dragging her and holding her down.  On May 28, 2024, Berrera allegedly told N.D. to message C.D. on Facebook Messenger and tell her to take back her statement to police.
  • Jony Borgos Santiago, 32, of 60 Conant Road, six counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault. On March 19, 2024, Santiago is accused of sexually assaulting a woman when she was sleeping. 
  • Dylan Cuddihy, 23, of 40A Burns Hill Road, Wilton, attempted endangering the welfare of a child and certain uses computer services. Between June 3 and 12, 2024 in Wilton, Cuddihy is accused of using the internet app MeetMe to send multiple messages to a person named Holly, who he believed to be a 14-year-old girl, in an attempt to solicit nude photos and sex from her.
  •  James Francis Dale III, 44, of 15 Kinsley St., receiving stolen property.  On May 24, 2023 in Hudson, Dale is accused of retaining a 2020 Big-Tex trailer, the property of North and South Construction believing it had probably been stolen.
  • Christopher Damata, 31, of Shrewsbury, Mass., four counts of attempted aggravated felonious sexual assault, two counts of aggravated felonious sexual count and one charge of second-degree assault.   On July 10, 2022 in Merrimack, Damata is accused of sexually assaulting a woman when she was physically helpless to resist and did not give her consent.  He also is accused of choking her, causing impeded breathing.
  • Andrew Eastman, 36, of 6.5 Broad St., theft by unauthorized taking and attempted theft by deception. On Jan. 19, 2024, Eastman is accused of exercising control over 50 checks, with a total value of $50,000, belonging to the Flower Outlet LLC.  That same day, he is accused of forging one of those checks in the amount of $1,850 and depositing it in his Capital One account.
  • Barry English, 38, of 2 Cheryl St., receiving stolen property; theft by unauthorized taking; robbery; reckless conduct, deadly weapon, and felon in possession of a deadly weapon. On May 23, 2024, English is accused of retaining a vehicle belonging to G.R., knowing it had been stolen. On June 23, 2024, he is accused of brandishing a knife at a clerk at Cumberland Farms and demanding money; taking a vehicle belonging to L.T., and driving the wrong way on the F.E. Everett Turnpike.
  • David Chipchak, 61, of 15 Burns Hill Road, Hudson, robbery, criminal threatening and second-degree assault.  On April 3, 2024 in Hudson, Chipchak is accused of using a knife recklessly during a robbery and causing bodily injury to Natasha Blouin.
  • Matthew Janssens, 34, of Fitchburg, Mass., theft by unauthorized taking.  On Aug. 5, 2019 in New Ipswich, Janssens is accused of taking more than $1,501 belonging to Bay State Militaria.
  • Christian LaChapelle, 30, of 270 Prospect St., Franklin, two counts of domestic violence, criminal threatening, and one charge of reckless conduct, domestic violence. On April 24, 2024 in Nashua, LaChapelle is accused of pointing a gun at M.R. and threatening to kill her.  The reckless conduct charge alleges he ran at M.R., an intimate partner, while holding the firearm.
  • Eric Mathews, 51, of 139 Osgood Road, Unit B, Milford, criminal threatening and reckless conduct. On June 12, 2024 in Milford, Mathews is accused of brandishing a gun at J.M. and while on Route 13, driving his motor vehicle into another vehicle in which B.H. was a passenger.
  • Pedro Matos, 24, of 9 Mechanic St., Lawrence, Mass., forgery and theft by unauthorized taking.  On Sept. 19, 2023 in Nashua, Matos is accused of forging a check in his name for $70,257.50 drawn on the Main Street Bank account of Atlantic Restoration and Contracting Inc. On Sept. 28, 2023, he withdrew funds from an account at Bellwether Community Credit Union.
  • Benjamin J. Norton, 48, of 181 Robinson Road, Hudson, eight counts of possession of child sexual abuse images.  On Feb. 16, 2024 in Hudson, Norton is accused of being in possession of child sexual abuse images of boys and girls engaging in sexual conduct.
  • Carissa Ortiz, 33, 5 Granite St., Unit 2, two counts of forgery. On April 23, 2024, Ortiz is accused of forging a check in the amount of $943.78, made payable to herself, on a TD account belonging to the Sisters of Charity Foundation.
  • Corey A. Richard, 23, of 59 Garden St., Fitchburg, Mass., theft by unauthorized taking.  On Aug. 27, 2020 in New Ipswich, Richard is accused of taking more than $1,500 from Bay State Militaria.
  • Robert Sand, 43, of 7 Chestnut St., Milford, domestic violence, criminal threatening; two counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault, and four counts of second-degree assault.  Between July 4 and July 7, 2024 in Milford, Sand is accused of forcibly raping K.P, an intimate partner; choking her four times, and threatening to kill her with a chainsaw that he was holding and which was running.
  • Audrey Segale, 34, of 71 Hill Road, Temple, theft by deception; three counts of possession of fentanyl, subsequent offense, and possession of crack cocaine.  On June 28, 2023 in Nashua, Segale is accused of obtaining unauthorized control over more than $1,500 in funds belonging to A.B. when she presented two checks to Granite State Credit Union giving the false impression that A.B. had endorsed the checks and made them payable to Segale.  The drug offenses alleged she possessed the control substances on two different days, on Jan. 4, 2024 and May 19, 2024, both times in Nashua.
  • Lwaboshi Simwerayi, 27, of 153 Dave St., Manchester, witness tampering.  On July 16, 2024 in Nashua, Simwerayi is accused of telling A.S., “I am going to come after you if you continue with these charges,” and “I am going to kick in your door if you take it this far, and you know what kind of person I am capable of.”
  • Adam Sundstrom, 24, no fixed address, Nashua, two counts of criminal threatening, deadly weapon.  On May 27, 2024, Sundstrom is accused of holding a knife while threatening to engage in a fight with W.A. and R.A. 
  • Samara Sullivan, 20, of 2A Marshall St., Milford, reckless conduct and criminal threatening.  On May 20, 2024 in Milford, Sullivan is accused of holding a knife over the head of her mother, B.J.R., and applying pressure so that the knife almost cut B.J.R.
  • Leslie Velastro, 61, of 312 Mason Road, Milford, aggravated felonious sexual assault.  Between March 1 and June 1, 2023 in Milford, Velastro is accused of performing oral sex on a 7-year-old girl.
  • Illias Zotos, 37, no fixed address, four counts of interference with custody.  On Dec. 6, 2023 in Hollis, Zotos is accused of taking and concealing M.Z, age 7, and A.Z., age 5, from their mother when he did not have custody.
  • Jacob Zwart, 64, of Port Saint Lucie, Fla., two counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault; two counts of pattern of aggravated felonious sexual assault, and two counts of felonious sexual assault.  Between Nov. 9, 2000 and Nov. 8, 2003 in Merrimack, Zwart is accused of sexually assaulting a child, beginning when she was 10 years old.

What is a Grand Jury indictment? According to the NH Law Library, an indictment is a criminal charge against a person by a Grand Jury. A Grand Jury considers evidence presented by the County Attorney or the Attorney General and decides whether there is sufficient evidence to formally charge a person with committing a crime. It is part of due process. Any accused individual is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court of law. If you have a question about this information contact the Hillsborough County Superior Court. If you have court documents to show that you have been cleared of charges, contact publisher@nashuainklink.com.