NEW BEDFORD, MASS. (WHDH) - A man arrested in connection with a shooting that left a New Bedford police officer wounded was ordered held without bail on Monday after appearing in court, following his arrest over the weekend.
Cheybane Vasconcelos-Furtado, 20, pleaded not guilty while appearing in a courtroom filled, in-part, with members of the New Bedford Police Department.
The prosecution said video evidence connected Vasconcelos-Furtado with the shooting at Rivet and Orchard streets on Monday, July 17, which resulted in New Bedford Police Detective Lavar Gilbert suffering a gunshot wound to the face.
Gilbert had been working undercover and in an unmarked car at the time of the shooting and was able to drive himself to the hospital afterwards, according to police. He was later released from a facility in Boston the following Friday.
“Video shows multiple muzzle flashes come from the rear of that vehicle that’s being operated by the defendant,” said prosecutor Sean Gilderson. “The vehicle then makes its way through the city where its captured on several other cameras.”
Gilderson said the 20-year-old suspect was driving the car when someone in the backseat had opened fire. The car was later dumped and recovered in Rhode Island.
Authorities said Gilbert was not believed to be the target of the shooting, pointing out that another man was also shot, suffering a gunshot wound to the foot. The victim was dropped off at a hospital that same night and was treated for a non-life-threatening injury, according to Massachusetts State Police.
In court, the prosecution said Vasconcelos-Furtado was the cousin of a 20-year-old murder victim was who was killed in New Bedford on July 3, and that the drive-by shooting on July 17 last week may have been in retaliation for the homicide.
“I would just state for the record that my client is not alleged to have been the shooter in this case,” Vasconcelos-Furtado’s attorney told the court.
While the suspect is due back in court in August, officials told 7NEWS Gilbert continues to recover at home. His department previously said he will require a follow-up procedure in the near future as he continues to make progress.
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