ITEM PHOTO BY DAVID WILSON
An officer returns to the scene of a fatal shooting on Bowler Street.
By GAYLA CAWLEY
LYNN — A quiet residential neighborhood became a crime scene after Sina Zangiband, a 24-year-old deliveryman for Atha’s Famous Roast Beef, was shot to death early Monday night.
Zangiband, of Salem, was delivering food for Atha’s, when he was shot multiple times on Bowler Street, near St. Pius V. School, a Catholic elementary school. Zangiband was found dead in his vehicle, according to the Essex County District Attorney’s office.
Brian Brito, 21, of Manchester, N.H., was arrested by State Police while driving a car sought in connection with the fatal shooting, and was ordered held without bail following a Peabody District Court appearance Tuesday.
A not guilty plea was entered on behalf of Brito, who remained behind the door out of sight during his arraignment. Judge Richard Mori ordered him held until April 10 when he will be appear in court again for a dangerousness hearing.
WBZ-TVBrian Brito is taken to Peabody District Court in a screenshot provided by WBZ-TV.
Brito, a “person of interest” in the Lynn homicide, was arraigned on unrelated charges filed by State Police, including carrying an unlicensed firearm and motor vehicle charges.
State Police said Brito was driving the gray Audi that was the subject of a police alert broadcast after the fatal shooting shortly before 6 p.m.
Police pulled over Brito in Peabody about four hours after the shooting, according to a state police statement, and found an illegal firearm in his possession. Brito was quickly linked to the description of a suspect wanted by North Andover police in connection with an armed robbery and sexual assault in that community less than an hour before he was pulled over.
North Andover officers responding to a Richdale store were told by a female clerk that a man entered the store with his face concealed with a mask, and brandished a firearm. The man ordered the clerk at gunpoint to lock the doors, and took her to a back room where she was sexually assaulted. The gunman then emptied the cash drawer and took numerous lottery tickets before fleeing the scene in an unknown direction, according to a North Andover police statement.
North Andover police issued an arrest warrant for armed robbery while masked, aggravated rape and kidnapping. Brito is expected to be arraigned next week in Lawrence District Court.
Brito’s defense attorney Rebecca Whitehill would not comment on the charges out of Peabody, other than to say “he was arrested and he had firearms, a firearm on his person. That’s about all I could tell you.”
Whitehill said she had not discussed the allegations out of North Andover or Peabody with Brito, and added that she would not share that information with the media if she had.
She requested that Brito remain behind the door during his arraignment, rather than come into the court, which was allowed by Judge Mori.
“If, in any allegations, there is an issue as to his identification, we would hate to have his face plastered all over various media and have an improper suggestive identification,” Whitehill said.
The Lynn homicide is being investigated by the DA’s office, the Essex State Police Detective Unit and the Lynn Police Department.
Katharine Ruiz, 25, of Lynn, works at the Dunkin’ Donuts next door to Atha’s and said she was a friend of Zangiband.
“He was a hard worker — very quiet, yet always had a smile on his face,” Ruiz said.
Ruiz said Zangiband was not a violent person, but just happened to cross paths with someone who was. From what she has gathered, she said it was a road rage incident that caused his tragic death. Authorities have not released a motive for the homicide.
“I’m not sure if Sina was cut off or vice versa, but the gunman became enraged and got out of his dark Audi with New Hampshire plates, shot Sina as many as three times, close range through the car window, got back in his car and sped off,” Ruiz said. “Sina was on his way from Atha’s to a delivery on Eastern Avenue and cut through Bowler Street around 6 p.m.
“It’s heartbreaking to know that people can take life for a reason most people find silly,” she continued. “He is greatly missed (by) a lot of people, not just his immediate family, but his Atha’s family too.”
Bowler Street residents described the neighborhood as quiet and safe. A spokesman for St. Pius School said the homicide was “unsettling.”
“We are grateful that no one from the school was injured and all of our students, faculty and staff are safe,” said Terrence Donilon, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of Boston. “This was certainly unsettling news. We are thankful for the tremendous efforts of the Lynn Police and all law enforcement.
“The St. Pius Principal Mr. Maestranzi has been in communication with parents, faculty and staff assuring them of the school’s desire to be supportive of the students as the community comes to grip with this senseless act of violence. The Catholic Schools Office for the Archdiocese has been in contact with the school administration offering support. St. Pius School is a wonderful, safe and vibrant Catholic school. The school extends its expression of prayers for all impacted by this event.”
Sandro Jolibois, 34, a Bowler Street resident, said the neighborhood is pretty quiet.
“It’s frightening because my kids get to see what happened,” Jolibois said. “It’s not what you want for your kids.”
Jolibois said his 7-year-old child saw the victim in the car after the shooting, and said “it’s a healing process,” referring to helping his young children process the incident.
He said the shooting could have happened anywhere, and it wasn’t anyone from the neighborhood. He said one car pulled alongside the other one and “blasted” the other one.
Matthew Krajewski, 73, a Wrentham resident, was visiting his son and daughter-in-law at their home in the neighborhood. He said his son had been living there for 10 years, and nothing similar had ever happened during that timeframe that he could recall, calling it a nice neighborhood.
“We live in an almost rural neighborhood and it could happen there too, I suppose,” Krajewski said.
A Bowler Street resident walking her dog on Tuesday, who did not want to be identified, said she had been living there for 12 years and the street had always been quiet and uneventful. She said she heard shots Monday night, police were there within minutes, along with other emergency responders. When a sheet was put over the vehicle with the victim inside, she said she knew there was no chance of resuscitation.
“It made the whole neighborhood uneasy, but I guess it can happen anywhere,” the woman said.
Gayla Cawley can be reached at gcawley@itemlive.com. Follow her on Twitter @GaylaCawley