PITTSFIELD, Mass. - A city man was founded guilty of three counts of rape and abuse of a child on Wednesday.

 

Omar Enriquez, 43, was found guilty by a jury after some two hours of deliberation on Wednesday. The case a retrial after the first jurors were unable to reach a decision and it was ruled a mistrial.

 

The charges against Enriquez related to an incident first occurring four years ago, when the victim was 14 years old. He was also found guilty on charges of raping the same victim in 2015 and 2016 when she was 15. 

 

The lead prosecutor in the case was Assistant District Attorney Andrew P. Giarolo. Enriquez faces a minimum of 10 years in state prison at sentencing.

 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Charges are pending against a city woman who allegedly ran over a pedestrian and then drove away.

 

Police say on Monday at about 3:07 p.m. officers responded to the intersection of West Union Street and Pacific Street for a reported hit and run. Jeanine Pettijohn, 45, was found injured. She was transported to Berkshire Medical Center and admitted.

 

Police later found the vehicle on Union Street and identified Debra Johnson, 51, as the operator. Charges are pending against Johnson. 

 

The crash remains under investigation by the Pittsfield Police Traffic Bureau. Anyone who may have witnessed the crash is asked to contact Officer David Hallas at (413)-448-9700 Ext. 560.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Seven people were arrested during a series of drug raids on Friday.

 

The Berkshire County District Attorney's office said some 4,440 bags of heroin, 82 grams of cocaine, weapons, ammunition, and about $40,000 in cash were seized on Friday during the operations.

 

The office is charging Shameen Howard, 27, and Aquireya Howe, 22, both of Springfield, Dylan Ducharme, 23, Ryan Henault, 21, Paul Lewis, 23, Zackary Kirkland, 20, and James Daley, 26, all of Pittsfield with trafficking in heroin and conspiracy to violate drug laws.

 

Lewis, Kirkland, and Daley were also charged with trafficking in cocaine, while Henault also faces a charge of possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute. 

 

The raids were a combined effort between Berkshire and Hampden State Police Detective Units, the Berkshire County Sheriff's Office, and Pittsfield, Dalton, and North Adams Police. 

 

The District Attorney's office said raids were conducted at a Springfield home and at two apartments in Pittsfield. Arrests were made during vehicle stops in Pittsfield on Brown Street, West Street, and West Housatonic Street.

 

Police also confiscated 4,400 bags of heroin, 82 grams of cocaine, a .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol and a 9mm Glock, a ballistic vest, ammunition and about $40,000 in cash. 

 

"I am grateful for our law enforcement partners for interrupting a major drug-trafficking operation between Springfield and Pittsfield, and getting a large amount of dangerous drugs and weapons off the streets of Berkshire County," District Attorney Andrea Harrington said in a prepared statement. 

 

"Our community is safer this week than it was last week thanks to their diligence and bravery. This operation is an example of how the Berkshire District Attorney's Office works hand-in-hand with law enforcement to enhance public safety in Berkshire County."

 

Five of the defendants were held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing and pre-trial hearings are scheduled for Howe and Daley in May.

POWNAL, Vt. — A local man was arrested Monday morning after an altercation at the wastewater treatment plant on Dean Road. 

 

Eric Harris, 34, of Pownal is charged with simple assault, aggravated disorderly conduct and unlawful mischief.  

 

According to a release by State Trooper Shawn Sommers, troopers from the Shaftsbury barracks responded to the plant at about 9:58 a.m. on Monday for a report of an "out of control" man. Harris is alleged to have struck an employee of the treatment facility causing pain. Further investigation, according to the report, revealed that Harris had allegedly caused damage to a fence at the main entrance to the facility. 

 

The release did not state what may have caused the altercation or the name of the alleged victim.  

 

Harris was taken to the barracks for processing and was later released on conditions to appear in Vermont Superior Court's Criminal Division in Bennington on April 29.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Two men are facing murder charges in the death of 18-year-old Jaden Salois of Dalton.

 

Carlos Pascual-Polanco, 18, and Chiry Omar Pascual-Polanco, 22, both of Pittsfield were arraigned on murder charges on Friday related the shooting on Edward Avenue shooting of Salois.

 

Police discovered Salois outside a home on Edward, near the Elm Street intersection, in the early hours of Jan. 20. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

 

The alleged killers are being held without bail. First Assistant District Attorney Karen Bell is prosecuting the case.

 

"The Berkshire District Attorney’s Office was able to bring these charges thanks to the hard work and professionalism of the Pittsfield Police Department and State Police detectives assigned to the District Attorney’s Office," District Attorney Andrea Harrington said in a statement released on Friday. 

 

"We worked closely with law enforcement on this case. The District Attorney’s Office sends its sincere condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Salois."