In the early hours of August 18, 2022, the life of 32-year-old Jordan Wiggins was tragically cut short in Quincy, Massachusetts. Responding to reports of a shooting shortly before 1 a.m. at the Elevation Apartments on Crown Drive, police discovered Wiggins in a stairwell, suffering from gunshot wounds. He was rushed to a local hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries. The initial investigation suggested that the fatal encounter began as a robbery in the apartment building's parking lot that escalated into a deadly shooting.
The investigation into Wiggins' death led to a sweeping indictment by a Norfolk County Grand Jury in December 2022, charging seven men with murder. The months that followed saw a multi-state effort to apprehend the suspects. One of the men, Cornel Bell, Jr., was located and arrested in Houston, Texas, before being extradited back to Massachusetts. Another suspect, Dwayne D. Harper of Dorchester, was arrested in September 2022. Sheik Ramos of Boston was apprehended in New York.
The manhunt for the remaining suspects continued into the new year. Dante Clarke of Brockton was taken into custody in January 2023 at a hotel in Wareham. The following month, Derek Miranda, who also went by the name Derek Cardoso and had ties to Randolph and Dorchester, was apprehended. The other individuals indicted for their alleged roles in the murder of Jordan Wiggins were identified as Walter Batista of Boston and Clayton Rodrigues of Abington and Dorchester. The extensive investigation and subsequent arrests brought some measure of progress for a family and community seeking answers in the wake of a senseless act of violence.
