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The Berkshire Law Enforcement Task Force vehicle parked in front of 175 Middle Road on Wednesday. Law enforcement was at the home until late Wednesday evening.

State Police Arrest Suspect In Clarksburg Homicide

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CLARKSBURG, Mass. — The victim of the incident on Wednesday has been identified as Dennis Bernardi and a 36-year-old Clarksburg man has been arrested in his murder. 
 
William Gingerich was arrested by Lewiston, N.Y., Police on a warrant secured by the State Police Detective Unit assigned to the Berkshire District Attorney's Office. 
 
Clarksburg and North Adams Police responded to 175 Middle Road on Wednesday for a wellness check and discovered the body of the house's owner, 71-year-old Dennis Bernardi. 
 
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner took custody of the body and made a preliminary determination that the manner of death is homicide.
 
The State Police and the District Attorney's Office are now seeking to transport Gingerich back to Massachusetts for an arraignment in Northern Berkshire District Court on single counts of murder and kidnapping.
 
The District Attorney's Office provided no further information. State Police and the Berkshire County Sheriff's Department had officers at the house, a single-family home apparent undergoing renovations, well into the evening on Wednesday. 
 
Bernardi purchased the house in 2019.
 
"I send my heartfelt condolences to the Bernardi family and wish them the best in this difficult time, and I thank State Police, Clarksburg Police, and North Adams Police for their investigation into this tragedy," District Attorney Andrea Harrington said.

Update at 7:50 p.m.: The district attorney's office could not give a timeline on when information would be released so we cannot confirm some details we have. This article will be updated as soon more information is made available. 

Original post 3:27, Feb. 23, 2022:
CLARKSBURG, Mass. — Local and state police were investigating an incident at a Middle Road home on Wednesday.
 
The Berkshire Law Enforcement Task Force vehicle was parked in front of 175 Middle Road; the medical examiner's vehicle was reportedly at the scene earlier. 
 
Officers at the scene referred questions to the district attorney's office. iBerkshires has reached out and is waiting for a reply. 
 
The house is a single-family home owned by Dennis Bernardi, according to documents on file with the Registry of Deeds. 
 
Story developing ...

Tags: murder,   

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Drury Grad Killed in Florida Crash

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A Drury High School graduate was killed in a motor vehicle crash over the weekend in the state of Florida. 
 
Alison Felix, of Stamford, Vt., was a 2020 graduate of the high school and graduated this year from the University of Connecticut. She played basketball and soccer at Drury.
 
According to a message to the school community from North Adams' Superintendent of Schools Barbara Malkas, the district was notified that she was "tragically killed in a car collision while driving on the interstate in Florida."
 
It is not confirmed when or exactly where the accident occurred but NBC Miami Channel 6 reported a multivehicle crash on I-95 in Broward County late Saturday night in which two women were killed and four others injured. Two cars were stopped after a minor fender-bender when a third car rammed into them.
 
"She was an active, well-known, and admired student during her high school days, and leaves her sister, a current Drury senior, and many staff and friends who are shocked and saddened by her loss," Malkas wrote. "North Adams Public Schools mourns this young woman and wants to acknowledge this loss for her family and the community members who are impacted."
 
She also referred to the recent shooting incident at a school in Wisconsin in saying the school community would be provided information on mental health support resources as well as emergency operating procedures. 
 
"No parent ever wants to receive the message that something terrible has happened to their child. During the holiday season, it seems to be even more of an injury to the soul as we are bombarded with images of family unity," Malkas wrote. "Yesterday was defined by both a loss to our local community, as well as the news of another tragic school shooting, this time in Madison, Wisc."
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