Johnston man suspected of murder found dead in Charlestown

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A Johnston man who had been sought in connection with a homicide in North Attleboro was found dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound in South County on Sunday, according to the office of Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III.

Steven Fregeolle, 32, was named a suspect in the death of 37-year-old Brandi Berg of Riverside after an off-duty Massachusetts state trooper and Bridgewater Police officer followed his vehicle away from the shooting. North Attleboro Police had responded to a report of shots fired at the Fashion Crossing Plaza on Route 1 Saturday afternoon.

When police arrived on scene, they found Berg had sustained multiple gunshot wounds while sitting in her vehicle at the plaza. She was pronounced dead at Rhode Island Hospital later that night.

According to Quinn’s office, the off-duty officers were able to relay to responding officers that they were following a blue Subaru, and they also provided the license plate information. It was found that the car was registered to Fregeolle.

Witnesses at scene told police that Fregeolle approached Berg’s vehicle while aiming a handgun and fired multiple shots through the windshield. Further investigation found that Fregeolle and Berg had previously worked together at a car dealership in Warwick. Additionally, Berg’s boyfriend told police she had previously been in a relationship with Fregeolle.

According to Quinn’s office, Berg texted her current boyfriend just before the shooting and said that Fregeolle was in the parking lot and confronted her about seeing someone else. Fregeolle is said to have been messaging Berg frequently and displaying obsessive behavior toward her. He is additionally said to have contacted her friends and family to learn of her whereabouts.

A warrant was issued for Fregeolle, charging him with murder, and at around noon on Sunday police in Charlestown found his vehicle abandoned in a parking lot at the Francis C. Carter Memorial Preserve, an 842-acre wooded wildlife sanctuary. According to Quinn’s office, Fregeolle’s keys, cell phone, identification and credit cards were inside the car.

Law enforcement scoured the area for the next several hours, before a Narragansett Police K-9 officer, his K-9, a Charlestown Police officer and member of the Rhode Island State Police found Fregeolle’s body in the woods. A black handgun was found next to his body.

Autopsies are pending for both Berg and Fregeolle, according to Quinn’s office. The investigation remains ongoing.

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