A teenager was shot dead on Saturday with no provocation of the alleged killer. Alex Sierra, 16, was fired at when a Roslindale man asked him if he was from the Villa Victoria housing development, and Sierra answered “yes.”
Ricardo Arias was arraigned today in the Boston Municipal Court for allegedly murdering Sierra, and unlawful possession of a firearm, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley.
Arias and a 16-year-old companion were seen in the area of Tremont and West Boylston on Saturday evening, asking people on the streets if they lived in “the Villa,” a reference to the housing project that had a long-standing rivalry with Mission Hill. Investigators believe the rivalry sparked the shooting.
“The victim, Alex Sierra, was the one and only person who answered yes,” said Assistant District Attorney Amy Galatis.
The victim staggered into a barbershop after being shot, and was then transported to Boston Medical Center, where he died from the injuries.
“Once again, an innocent child has been gunned down amid the madness of a gang feud he had no part in,” Conley said. “Alex Sierra had no criminal record, he had never been arrested, he had no gang affiliation, and neither he nor his family did anything to deserve this fate.”
The suspects were apprehended through a description of their vehicle and their appearance.
According to Galatis, Arias was on a one-day-pass from the Department of Youth Services that allowed him to go to a baseball game. He was at the DYS for unlawfully possessing a handgun in December 2010.
Arias will go to court on October 4. His underage companion will attend a closed-door hearing at Juvenile Court.
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