The Hanover Police Department yesterday arrested a third suspect in conjunction with the Fall term attacks on students near the Hopkins Center. Two more arrests are planned for the near future.
Hanover police discovered Richard McEwen, 19, of Weeden Hill Road, Windsor, Vt., at the Lebanon District Court House. They charged him with one simple assault, according to a Hanover police department press release. McEwen was already on trial in Lebanon for an unrelated crime.
McEwen was allegedly involved in the late-evening attack of a male Dartmouth student by five aggressors, said Hanover police Detective Sergeant Frank Moran said. The victim was taken to Dick's House for observation, but sustained no serious injuries.
"The victim was knocked to the ground by one of the five and the group kicked and struck him repeatedly," Moran said of the Fall term incident.
The police had an arrest warrant for McEwen approximately one month after the attack, he said.
He said the police had to spend some time investigating who was involved with the attacks.
"We started by interviewing the victim, to see what he could remember," he said.
Moran said the help the police received from the Dartmouth community regarding the assault was very helpful.
"We interviewed a number of students who were in the area" on the evening of the attack, he said. "With this descriptive information, we started to formulate information about a group of people."
Moran said that the students were concerned enough about what had happened that they willingly helped with composite drawings and interviews.
"We had good help from Safety and Security early-on," Moran said.
Moran said he followed these leads and then conducted interviews with various suspects and their associates.
"Approximately a month after the incident, we had enough information so we felt we knew who it was," he said.
Moran said that the department has two arrest warrants for the remaining suspects who are "not readily available for apprehension."
The five perpetrators "are all known to each other," Moran said. "Some have been in trouble before."
He said that because McEwen is not from New Hampshire, there were complications in his arrest.
But Hanover police were sure to find him in Lebanon yesterday at his trial at the district court for another matter.
"We made a note of the fact that he'd be in Lebanon on this date, if we hadn't picked him up already," Moran said.
The incident was "unrelated" to the November assault, he said. "It's my understanding that it involved a motor vehicle."
McEwen was released yesterday on $1,000 personal recognizance bail but will be arraigned on May 22, according to the press release.
"If convicted, he could face up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine, along with a payment to the victim for his injuries," Moran said.
