Johnston Police have suspect in double homicide & abduction

Tracey C. O'Neill
Posted 8/13/13

“We are not breathing easy yet,” said Johnston Chief Richard S. Tamburini at a press conference following arraignment of alleged murderer Daniel Rodriguez, 27, yesterday. “Before I address this …

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Johnston Police have suspect in double homicide & abduction

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“We are not breathing easy yet,” said Johnston Chief Richard S. Tamburini at a press conference following arraignment of alleged murderer Daniel Rodriguez, 27, yesterday. “Before I address this matter, I would like to express my deepest sympathy to the friends and families of the victims, Evelyn Burgos and Vanessa Perez.”

Rodriguez was arrested Sunday afternoon suspected of committing a double homicide in the early morning hours on Sunday at his girlfriend’s residence on Oaktree Avenue in Johnston. Police did not have an address for Rodriguez. No motive was given for the murders.

The confirmed double homicide saw Evelyn Burgos, 40, and her daughter Vanessa, 25, murdered by gunshot and resulted in a nationwide Amber Alert and manhunt for Burgos’ 2-year-old son, Isaiah Perez.

“The events that led up to now have been quite tragic,” said the chief. “I am relieved to say that the missing 2-year-old, Isaiah Perez, is fine and at DCYF about to be reunited with his family.”

Perez was located by a Providence Police patrolman, wandering the streets in the area of the Chad Brown Projects. Tamburini was unable to say how the child had arrived in Providence, how long Isaiah had been there or if he had been in the custody of any additional suspects.

“This is an ongoing investigation. That part of it is still open,” he said.

According to Tamburini, two juveniles were also found alive at the murder scene. One child belonged to Burgos and the other was one of two children of Vanessa Perez.

“Two juveniles found at the scene and identified as the victims’ children are also fine and with DCYF and family,” said Tamburini.

The JPD was unaware as to who would be given custody of the three children. A statement from DCYF was unavailable.

The hunt for Isaiah began after Johnston Police received a 911 call at approximately 5:20 a.m. on Sunday morning. According to reports from the JPD, police found two victims at the scene and became aware of a missing child.

An Amber Alert was then issued for 2-year-old Isaiah Perez, youngest son of Evelyn Burgos, who was last seen at 4:30 am. The alert also included information on one person of interest, Malcolm Crowell, believed at the time to be armed and dangerous. In a matter of hours, Fall River Police apprehended Crowell at his place of employment.

“During the course of this investigation we interviewed Malcolm Crowell, the first suspect in this crime,” said Tamburini. “Crowell cooperated fully with investigators and assisted us with locating Isaiah, the missing 2-year-old,” he said. “Crowell is no longer a person of interest and there is no indication that he participated in this crime.”

According to the chief, evidence gleaned at the scene of the crime had him initially identified as a person of interest.

Family members who gathered at the scene of the crime on Sunday and later held vigil at the Johnston Police station maintained belief in Crowell’s innocence before police cleared him.

“Malcolm didn’t do this,” said one of the Perez family members. “He loves that baby. Vanessa and Malcolm were straight up.” Several family members expressed agreement.

Tamburini told members of the press that Crowell had assisted in the investigation and had made phone calls, assisting in locating the missing child.

Representatives of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children arrived on the scene at the JPD on Sunday afternoon to assist in locating the missing child.

The JPD with the assistance of a multi-jurisdictional law enforcement brigade identified a second suspect, Daniel Rodriguez, who was believed to be Evelyn Burgos’ boyfriend. Rodriguez, according to reports, was apprehended by members of the Providence Police Department and was first approached by an off-duty PPD officer.

“I would be remiss if I didn’t take a moment to express my gratitude to the men and women of law enforcement everywhere who participated in this investigation,” said Tamburini. “I would like to acknowledge the effort of uniformed officers with my agency and the efforts of Major Frank Levesque and his team of detectives. This joint operation has set a new standard of excellence for cooperation and collaboration between investigative agencies.”

Tamburini went on to acknowledge all who contributed to the apprehension of Rodriguez and the safe return of Isaiah Perez.

“I would also like to express sincere appreciation to Colonel Stephen O’Donnell of the Rhode Island State Police and his crime scene unit,” he said. “I would like to thank Colonel Hugh Clemens of the Providence Police and the fine men and women of that agency. This was a united effort between the Johnston Police and these two outstanding departments. We also had significant assistance from the Attorney General’s Office. Asst. Attorney General James Sullivan gave tremendous support to this investigation and walked us through all of the evidence at the scene.”

Tamburini also thanked the Massachusetts State Police and Fall River Police for coming to their aid in locating Crowell.

“Their quick response and decisive action allowed us to focus our investigation on one particular suspect,” he said. “I’d also like to thank the FBI and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.”

Police believe the suspect broke into the house at 3 Oaktree Drive.

Rodriguez was arraigned on two counts of murder, three counts of using a firearm while committing a crime of violence, one count of burglary, one count of kidnapping and one count of license required to carry a firearm.

The police have not at this time determined where the child was during the 16 hours that he was missing.

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