Dejan Belnavis, a 27-year-old suspect in the deadly shooting of a Worcester woman and her daughter, was ordered held without bail on Friday after being returned to Massachusetts from California.Massachusetts State Police said Dejan Belnavis was taken into custody in the area of the San Diego Zoo on March 11. The arrest came just three hours after the U.S. Marshals announced they had doubled the reward in connection with the search for Belnavis from $5,000 to $10,000.After his arrest, Belnavis consented to be returned to Massachusetts. Belnavis was wanted on charges of armed assault with intent to murder and possession of a firearm without a license. A probable cause hearing in the case was set for May 2. Supporters of Belnavis who attended the hearing declined to speak with reporters afterward. Video below: One suspect in court while another awaits extraditionChasity Nuñez, of Worcester, and her 11-year-old daughter, Zella, were the victims of the shooting in the city's Columbus Park neighborhood on March 5.A police report indicates that cellphone records suggest Belnavis was in the area at the time of the shooting and that investigators have surveillance video of the shooting."Two people walk up to the vehicle and start shooting, then they run in the direction where witnesses said a sedan was parked," the report states. The video also showed a vehicle, which matched a witness' description of the one used after the shooting. Through the car's built-in cellphone system, investigators said the vehicle was located in Hartford, Connecticut, near where a relative of Belnavis resides. Another person, 28-year-old Karel Mangual, of Worcester, was previously charged in the case. The Worcester Police Department said the shooting happened at about 3 p.m. on March 5, in the area of 1 Lisbon St., which is near the intersection of Englewood Avenue.The shooting victims were found in a vehicle parked along Englewood Avenue with serious wounds. Officers removed the victims from the vehicle, and they were transported to an area hospital, where they were later pronounced dead.Chasity Nuñez spent four years in the Connecticut Army National Guard as a patient administration specialist in the 142nd Medical Company. She earned the National Defense Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon and Army Achievement Medal.A statement shared by city officials indicated Chasity and Zella Nuñez were Worcester residents and that Zella was a Worcester Public Schools student.A relative of Chasity Nuñez, Tyrae Sims, said she was a devoted mother of two children: Zella and a younger girl.A photograph of the crime scene showed more than three dozen evidence markers in the roadway."This kind of thing is unusual for the city in general. This was a very violent act," Worcester police Lt. Sean Murtha.Belnavis is also due to be arraigned Monday on charges from Shrewsbury after a crash on Main Street. Charges include assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, intimidation of a witness and leaving the scene of a crash with property damage.
WORCESTER, Mass. — Dejan Belnavis, a 27-year-old suspect in the deadly shooting of a Worcester woman and her daughter, was ordered held without bail on Friday after being returned to Massachusetts from California.
Massachusetts State Police said Dejan Belnavis was taken into custody in the area of the San Diego Zoo on March 11. The arrest came just three hours after the U.S. Marshals announced they had doubled the reward in connection with the search for Belnavis from $5,000 to $10,000.
After his arrest, Belnavis consented to be returned to Massachusetts.
Belnavis was wanted on charges of armed assault with intent to murder and possession of a firearm without a license. A probable cause hearing in the case was set for May 2.
Supporters of Belnavis who attended the hearing declined to speak with reporters afterward.
Video below: One suspect in court while another awaits extradition
Chasity Nuñez, of Worcester, and her 11-year-old daughter, Zella, were the victims of the shooting in the city's Columbus Park neighborhood on March 5.
A police report indicates that cellphone records suggest Belnavis was in the area at the time of the shooting and that investigators have surveillance video of the shooting.
"Two people walk up to the vehicle and start shooting, then they run in the direction where witnesses said a sedan was parked," the report states.
The video also showed a vehicle, which matched a witness' description of the one used after the shooting. Through the car's built-in cellphone system, investigators said the vehicle was located in Hartford, Connecticut, near where a relative of Belnavis resides.
Another person, 28-year-old Karel Mangual, of Worcester, was previously charged in the case.
Hearst Owned
Karel Mangual, of Worcester, in court
The Worcester Police Department said the shooting happened at about 3 p.m. on March 5, in the area of 1 Lisbon St., which is near the intersection of Englewood Avenue.
The shooting victims were found in a vehicle parked along Englewood Avenue with serious wounds. Officers removed the victims from the vehicle, and they were transported to an area hospital, where they were later pronounced dead.
Connecticut Army National Guard
Chasity Nuñez spent four years in the Connecticut Army National Guard as a patient administration specialist in the 142nd Medical Company. She earned the National Defense Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon and Army Achievement Medal.
A statement shared by city officials indicated Chasity and Zella Nuñez were Worcester residents and that Zella was a Worcester Public Schools student.
A relative of Chasity Nuñez, Tyrae Sims, said she was a devoted mother of two children: Zella and a younger girl.
Tyrae Sims
Chasity Nunez and her 11-year-old daughter, Zella, were killed in a shooting on Englewood Avenue in Worcester, Massachusetts, on March 5, 2024.
A photograph of the crime scene showed more than three dozen evidence markers in the roadway.
"This kind of thing is unusual for the city in general. This was a very violent act," Worcester police Lt. Sean Murtha.
Belnavis is also due to be arraigned Monday on charges from Shrewsbury after a crash on Main Street. Charges include assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, intimidation of a witness and leaving the scene of a crash with property damage.