Police arrest Belmont Street shooting suspect in Rhode Island with stolen guns
Police arrested Hezekiah “Jack” Mendoza, 30, of Manchester, Friday night. He was wanted on a warrant for first-degree assault in connection with the Dec. 3 shooting on Belmont Street.
MANCHESTER, NH — Police have arrested Hezekiah “Jack” Mendoza, 30, of Manchester, wanted for first-degree assault in connection with the Dec. 3 shooting on Belmont Street.
On December 4 at around 5:45 p.m., a collaborative effort between the Manchester Police Department’s Special Enforcement Division (SED) and the Providence, RI, Police Department resulted in Mendoza’s capture. Mendoza was found at a residence on Western Street in Providence and taken into custody without incident.
During a search, Providence Police seized seven firearms, five of which have been confirmed to be stolen from various jurisdictions throughout the State of New Hampshire – to include Manchester, Bristol and Franklin.
His arrest was the result of a shooting on Dec. 3, 2015.
At around 10:47 a.m. Thursday Manchester Police responded to an apartment on Prescott Street for a report of a man suffering from a gunshot wound. Officers located the victim there, Jamie Leblanc, 34, of Manchester. Leblanc sustained a serious but non-life threatening injury to his leg. Leblanc told officers that he had been shot while at his apartment on Belmont Street. Leblanc was transported to the Elliot Hospital for treatment.
The apartment on Prescott Street where Leblanc was found, and his residence on Belmont Street, were both secured and processed as crime scenes. Detectives worked throughout the day and were able to identify Mendoza as a suspect shortly after the crime was committed.
Detective Michael Lavallee obtained an arrest warrant for Mendoza, who was arrested Friday evening, according to Det. Kenneth Loui.
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