In the early morning hours of October 28, 2023, a confrontation in a parking lot on the campus of Worcester State University tragically cut short the life of 19-year-old Randy Ardo Melendez Jr., a Black/African American male from Southbridge, Massachusetts. The incident, which occurred around 2:30 a.m., stemmed from a dispute between two groups of individuals who were visiting the university. Neither Melendez Jr. nor the individuals involved in the altercation were students at the school.
During the confrontation, shots were fired, striking Melendez Jr. and a 21-year-old man. Both victims were transported to local hospitals for treatment. Melendez Jr. ultimately succumbed to his injuries, his death coming just a few days after his nineteenth birthday. The second victim survived the shooting but was left paralyzed from the waist down. The violence prompted a shelter-in-place order for the university for several hours as law enforcement secured the scene and began their investigation.
In the days following the shooting, authorities identified 18-year-old Kevin Rodriguez of Lawrence as a suspect and sought the public's help in locating him, describing him as armed and dangerous. An arrest warrant was issued, charging him with armed assault with intent to murder. By December 2023, the investigation had progressed significantly, leading to the indictment of three individuals by a Worcester County Grand Jury. Kevin Rodriguez was indicted on a charge of murder in connection with the death of Randy Ardo Melendez Jr.
Two other men, 19-year-old Richard Nieves of Spencer and 20-year-old Kenneth Doelter of Southbridge, were also indicted on charges of armed robbery and aggravated kidnapping related to the robbery of the 21-year-old victim before he was shot. In addition to these charges, Nieves, who is accused of shooting the surviving victim, was also indicted on charges of armed assault with intent to murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury, among other firearms-related offenses.
