Anthony DeMayo, 18, was arraigned for the murder of 68-year-old Janet Swallow on Friday, March 13
Credit: CBS Boston
NEED TO KNOW
- Anthony DeMayo, 18, is accused of murder and home invasion in connection with the allegedly random killing of a nurse
- DeMayo was arraigned on Friday, March 13. He pleaded not guilty
- The high school senior allegedly “told investigators that he planned on committing this act for a long time, and wanted to kill someone for a long time,” according to court documents
A Massachusetts high school student is accused of murder and home invasion in connection with the allegedly random killing of a nurse.
Anthony DeMayo, 18, was arraigned for the murder of 68-year-old Janet Swallow on Friday, March 13, the Essex County District Attorney Paul F. Tucker announced in a press release.
Per the release, the senior at Bishop Fenwick High School pleaded not guilty to murder and armed home invasion. He was ordered held without bail and sent to undergo a mental health evaluation.
Officers with the Lynn Police Department were called to an area of Standish Road on Thursday, March 12, where they came across DeMayo “acting erratically” while carrying a knife, prosecutors alleged.
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Massachusetts State Police then searched his residence and “recovered evidence leading them to conduct a wellbeing check at Swallow’s residence on Amherst Street in Danvers,” per the district attorney's statement. “Upon searching her home on Thursday evening, police found her deceased with wounds consistent with a homicide.”
According to court documents obtained by CBS News, DeMayo “informed Lynn Officers that he had killed a woman in Danvers the night before."
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DeMayo allegedly "told investigators that he planned on committing this act for a long time, and wanted to kill someone for a long time," per the documents, according to CBS.
According to a statement of facts filed by the police, he "stated that he drove around surrounding communities before stopping in Danvers, in front of a home that was under construction with a gray porta potty out front,” the outlet reported. “He then stated that he located a home to break into and he did so by climbing in through a window, ripping the screen from the window in order to climb through into the kitchen."
According to the statement, per CBS, DeMayo allegedly found a woman sleeping in a bedroom and “went into her bedroom and began stabbing her in the neck. After the knife became stuck, he pulled her off the bed onto the floor. After this act was complete, [he] exited the home and drove his car back to his home in Lynn."
At a press conference on Thursday, prosecutors said at this time, there is no evidence of a link between DeMayo and Swallow.
“This terrible tragedy has struck the Swallow family, the Town of Danvers, and the Bishop Fenwick community, and they are all in our thoughts as we continue to investigate,” Tucker said in the release.
According to NBC Boston, Swallow worked in the intensive care unit as a nurse at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center in Burlington.
Lahey's chief nursing officer Scott James described Swallow as "a beloved and valued member of the Lahey Hospital & Medical Center community" in a statement to the outlet.
"We share our deepest condolences with her family and loved ones and her colleagues in the Nursing Department and across our hospital. Our thoughts are with them during this very difficult time," he said.
A probable cause hearing is scheduled for April 1.
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