Massachusetts man accused of sexually assaulting 2 children, then fleeing to New Hampshire, DA says
Updated Jan 28, 2021;
A Massachusetts man accused of sexually assaulting two children before fleeing to New Hampshire years ago was arrested earlier this week, authorities said.
Daniel Napier was arraigned Wednesday in Concord District Court on 10 charges in connection with the alleged past sexual assaults, according to a statement from Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan’s office.
The 58-year-old Acton man knew the minors he is accused of sexually assaulting, the district attorney’s office noted in its statement.
The sexual assault claims came to light in November 2019 after the victims told a family member Napier touched them inappropriately on several occasions at his apartment in Acton. The allegations were then reported to police in the town, according to the statement from Ryan’s office.
Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan is pursuing murder charges against a man who allegedly used his pickup truck to kill Henry Tapia, a 34-year-old father of three, in Belmont last week.
Last Tuesday, January 19th, at around 4:20 p.m., Belmont police responded to a 911 call to find Henry Tapia, of Boston, injured in the middle of Upland Road, according to a statement from the Middlesex County district attorney’s office.
According to police, Dean Kapsalis, a 54 year-old white man from Hudson, was involved in an argument with the victim and began yelling racist slurs at Tapia, a Black man.
Tapia allegedly began to walk back to his vehicle when Kapsalis drove his Dodge Dakota pickup truck into Tapia and dragged his body a short distance along the pavement before he fled from the scene.
The man who allegedly struck and killed Henry Tapia in Belmont last week is now facing a murder charge.
On Monday, 54-year-old Dean Kapsalis, of Hudson, was arraigned on new charges, virtually, in Cambridge District Court. Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Belmont police chief James McIsaac confirmed that the defendant is facing charges of murder and leaving the scene causing death.
Earlier, Kapsalis was initially charged with a civil rights violation causing injury, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury, and leaving the scene of a crash.
Police say Kapsalis ran over Tapia with his truck after the two got into an argument in which Kapsalis, who is white, shouted racist slurs at Tapia, who was Black and Latino.
Hundreds Gather In Belmont To Remember Henry Tapia And Decry Racial Hatred
A crowd gathered in Belmont s Cushing Square for a vigil for Henry Tapia.
Edgar B. Herwick III/
Hundreds gathered on a chilly Thursday evening in Belmontâs Cushing Square to speak out against racial hatred and remember Henry Tapia.
Tapia, a 35-year old black and Latino man, was killed in Belmont earlier this week after an apparent road rage incident. The suspect, Dean Kapsalis, allegedly hurled a racial slur before getting in his pickup truck and running Tapia over.
â[Tapia] was a beloved brother, a beloved son, a beloved father,â said Sarah Bilodeau, of the group