Jordan Wiggins

Jordan Wiggins, a 32-year-old man who grew up in Bridgewater, was a resident of the Elevation Apartments in Quincy, Massachusetts. In the early morning hours of August 18, 2022, his life was cut short. Around 12:40 a.m., Quincy police responded to reports of a shooting at the Crown Drive apartment complex. They discovered Wiggins in a stairwell that led from the parking area to the residences, suffering from serious gunshot wounds. He was rushed to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Investigators later stated they believed the deadly encounter began as a robbery in the building's parking lot.

The investigation into the death of Jordan Wiggins led to a sweeping indictment from a Norfolk County Grand Jury on December 20, 2022. Seven men were charged with murder, along with a host of other offenses including armed home invasion, masked armed robbery, and kidnapping with the intent to extort. The indicted men were identified as Cornel Bell, Jr.; Dwayne D. Harper of Dorchester; Sheik Ramos of Boston; Dante Clarke of Brockton; Derek Miranda, who also used the name Derek Cardoso and had ties to Randolph and Dorchester; Walter Batista of Boston; and Clayton Rodrigues of Abington and Dorchester. Two women were also indicted on lesser charges of misleading investigators.

The indictments launched a multi-state effort to apprehend the suspects. Dwayne D. Harper had already been arrested in September 2022 on related charges. Cornel Bell, Jr., was located and taken into custody in Houston, Texas, in early December and extradited to Massachusetts. Sheik Ramos was apprehended in New York and, like Harper, was scheduled for arraignment in January 2023. The manhunt continued into the new year, with Dante Clarke being arrested at a hotel in Wareham on January 23, 2023. The fifth suspect, Derek Miranda, was arrested on February 2, 2023.

As the cases moved through the court system, there was a significant development. In September 2026, co-defendant Derek Miranda, also known as Derek Cardoso, faced a judge in a bench trial in Norfolk Superior Court. After the evidence was presented, the judge acquitted Miranda of the murder charge, citing insufficient evidence for a conviction.

The acquittal marked the first major court resolution in the case. As of September 2026, the legal proceedings for the other individuals charged in connection with the death of Jordan Wiggins were ongoing.