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.

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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. 

 

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