Suspect charged with the kidnapping and death of Jassy Correia
On March 3, Louis Coleman III was charged in federal court in Boston with the kidnapping of 23-year-old Jassy Correia, who had been missing since February 24.
Coleman, 32, of Providence, Rhode Island, has been charged with one count of kidnapping, resulting in death. Coleman was arrested on Thursday, February 28 in Delaware. He will be transferred to Massachusetts at a later date.
According to the charging document, after learning of the disappearance of Correia, law enforcement reviewed surveillance tape from outside of the Venu nightclub in Boston where Correia was celebrating her 23rd birthday, and also the last place she was seen by her friends. The video showed Correia leaving the area and entering a vehicle with a man later identified as Coleman.
Surveillance footage from Coleman’s Providence, Rhode Island, apartment building showed Coleman, at about 4:15 a.m. on Sunday, February 24, parking and exiting the vehicle, and then returning a short time later carrying a blanket.
He then walked from the car to the front of the building carrying a body with long hair and clothing consistent with the description of Jassy Correia. Once he entered the building, surveillance video showed Coleman dropping the victim on the floor and dragging her towards the elevator, and subsequently towards his apartment unit. The victim was not moving; and her body was limp.
It is alleged that on February 26, surveillance video from the defendant’s apartment building showed Coleman enter the apartment building with Walmart shopping bags. Law enforcement subsequently obtained video surveillance and a receipt from a Walmart in Providence, that revealed Coleman had purchased three Tyvek suits, duct tape, two candles, electrical tape, one mask, surgical gloves, two pairs of safety goggles, an odor respirator and CLN release bleach bath.
At approximately 9:58 p.m. on February 27, Coleman is seen on video surveillance entering the apartment building with what appeared to be a new, large suitcase. At 1:15 a.m., on February 28, Coleman is seen in the video wheeling the suitcase away from his apartment unit towards the elevator, eventually out of the building and into the parking lot where his vehicle was located. Coleman appeared to have difficulty lifting the suitcase into the trunk of his car.
Additional surveillance video showed Coleman on several occasions exiting his apartment building with other items, including trash bags, cardboard boxes, a bottle of bleach, a laptop case, a computer tower and a small duffle bag.
Later in the day on February 28, a search warrant was executed at Coleman’s apartment, where two packages of hooded coveralls and two respirator masks were recovered. A sofa with four large cushions, one of which was missing a cover, was also observed. In a dumpster outside of the apartment complex, white trash bags, a bag containing plastic sheets, men’s jeans with bleach stains and a belt, a white nylon hooded coverall, an empty box of baking soda, clear safety goggles, a respirator mask, duct tape packaging, rubbing alcohol, Walmart bags, used plastic gloves, an empty package from a car air freshener, three empty packages of purifying charcoal and a sponge were recovered.
On the afternoon of February 28, Coleman’s vehicle was stopped by Delaware authorities on I-95 South near Wilmington, Delaware. Officers ordered Coleman out of the vehicle and asked him if anyone else was in the vehicle with him. It is alleged that Coleman stated words to the effect: “She’s in the trunk.”
Officers discovered Correia’s lifeless body in the trunk of Coleman’s vehicle. She was wrapped in a sofa cushion cover, which was inside of a black trash bag, inside of a large suitcase that matches the suitcase Coleman was observed bringing into his apartment a few days earlier. Correia’s body displayed significant bruising and a bloodied face which had been bound with gray duct tape, and was covered in what is believed to be baking soda.
A duffle bag, a pair of new long-handled loppers, plastic garbage bags, clothing, a red plastic gas container, a green butane lighter, black gloves, charcoal air purifiers, air fresheners, tinted safety glasses, plastic Walmart bags, work towels, cloth work-gloves, a new set of DeWalt pliers, a laptop, a computer hard-drive/tower, and disinfectant wipes were also recovered in Coleman’s vehicle.
Coleman was taken into custody and transported to a Delaware State Police barracks. There, it was noted that Coleman had a large bandage on the right side of his face. When asked about it, he allegedly replied, “It’s from the girl.”
The charge of kidnapping resulting in death provides for a sentence of death or life in prison. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
GoFundMe page established to help care for Jassy Correia ‘s two-year-old daughter
Jassy Correia was kidnapped while leaving the Venu Night Club in Boston where she was celebrating her 23rd birthday. She was found murdered and her body was found in a suitcase in her Kidnapper’s car in Delaware. We are looking to help raise money for the family of Jassy and her 2 year old daughter who was left behind. Please donate anything you can to easy the burden on the family.
Any and all additional money raised will be used to setup college fund for Jassy’s daughter. Please help Jassy’s family in this very difficult time of need as we suffer through this horrific tragedy. Thank you for your continuing support. ~ per GoFundMe
(Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Massachusetts)
~ Posted by: Richard Webster, Ace News Today / Connect with Richard on Facebook and Twitter
