Massachusetts stabbing suspect Jared Ravizza threw a shovel into a neighbor’s window before frantic attack, locals say

US News

by Jack Morphett and David Propper

A man who allegedly stabbed six people for no apparent reason in Massachusetts and killed his roommate in Connecticut over the weekend was enraged by an argument between the roommate and a neighbor before the bloody incident, neighbors said.

Jared Ravizza, 26, was apparently enraged after two women called police on his roommate, an older man named “Bruce,” for trespassing on their property while walking his dog in the Deep River neighborhood, local residents told The Post on Monday.

“Whatever happened, it was like starting a fire with a matchstick,” neighbor Charlie Brashears said.

According to photos and neighbors’ accounts, Ravizza allegedly threw a shovel at the woman’s window on Saturday, breaking it. The women called police again, but when officers arrived to question Ravizza, they said they found a horrifying scene at the home that Ravizza and Bruce were renting through Vrbo, an Airbnb competitor.

A heavy police response was sparked in the quiet New England neighborhood on Saturday after Bruce and his dog were found dead, neighbors said.

However, Ravizza was nowhere to be found, having crossed the state line into Massachusetts and continued his violent acts there.

Police said the man was then arrested on suspicion of stabbing four girls, ages 9 to 17, at the Braintree AMC before driving to a McDonald’s in Plymouth and stabbing two employees with a knife, leaving all victims with non-life-threatening injuries.

As of Monday night, he had not been arrested or charged in connection with the Connecticut murders, and local police did not immediately confirm details of the charges cited by local residents.

Local residents said Bruce had been roaming the neighborhood with his grey poodle and sitting on people’s porches uninvited, prompting two women to tell him to leave — a stern instruction that seemed to infuriate Ravizza, neighbors allege.

“[The women] “They said, ‘Hey, this is inappropriate, we need to get out,’ and they filed a police complaint,” Brashears told the Post. “Whatever happened, it was like a firebrand. Jared picked up a shovel, went to their house and threw the shovel at their window.”

Another neighbor, Joe Osterling, also told the Post that Ravizza had thrown a shovel at Bruce’s window after he had been in an argument with the women.

“I think he told Jared about it, and Jared apparently went back to the house and threw a shovel through the window,” said Osterling, 64. “I don’t know if that was before or after he killed Bruce, but that’s how it all started. Then he left and went to the movie theater.”

Initially, only two officers responded, but the normally quiet area quickly descended into chaos once the body was discovered.

“Essex police officers and state troopers were there,” said Brashears, 54. “It looked like a domestic violence response. I was told they’d found a body. There were two officers there, but within 10 minutes it was chaos and seven or eight patrol cars were there.”

Brashears said he then asked police if the area was safe and was told the gunman had been caught out of state.

Neighbors believe a gray poodle named Lily was also found dead inside the home along with Bruce, though police did not immediately confirm this.

Neighbors said Ravizza had checked into the rental home through Vrbo on April 20 and had been living a largely secluded life, arriving and leaving in the Porsche Macan that was involved in the crash after the stabbing.

But Bruce, who moved in about two weeks ago, was more sociable. He freely told people he was “money-poor” and was being hosted by Ravizza, who plans to stay with them for at least a few months.

“Bruce said he had a friend on Vrbo who was staying with him,” Brashears said. “He made it very clear he didn’t have the money. Bruce said he was hoping his friend would let him stay for the rest of the month.”

Brashears said he was at work in New York City on Wednesday when his mother-in-law dropped by and heard two men arguing, but he wasn’t sure what the argument was about.

“It was a big fight,” he said. “She could hear them arguing. Nothing specific, but they both obviously sounded very angry.”

Osterling, who became friends with Bruce, said that while the neighbors disliked him, she thought he was a “true gentleman” who just wanted to chat with people — and assumed that Bruce would sit uninvited on people’s porches to catch his breath after he’d hurt his knee while walking Lily.

But Brashears found him “a bit odd.”

“Bruce would let his dog run around and sit on our porch. He would sit in our yard uninvited,” he said. “When the dog would relieve itself, he wouldn’t clean up.”

Meanwhile, Ms. Ravizza, with her distinctive long blonde hair, rarely spoke to her neighbors.

Last month, he filed to legally change his name to Jared Love Jones and occasionally posts photos of himself wearing lip gloss, face glitter and nail polish.

A neighbour, who did not want to be named, said the man usually dresses in men’s clothing but sometimes has nail polish on his nails and wears cut-off T-shirts that reveal his stomach.

According to a Boston Globe report, Ravizza’s legal troubles date back to at least April, when he was arrested in Martha’s Vineyard for allegedly attacking his father after “having a mental breakdown.”

He is charged with assault with intent to murder and two counts of assault and assault with a dangerous weapon in Saturday’s frenzied stabbing incident and is due to appear in court on Tuesday.