By REBECCA EVERETT
@GazetteRebecca
Daily Hampshire Gazette
NORTHAMPTON — A Springfield man who has been held since an alleged break into a Huntington home in October answered to new charges Wednesday in Hampshire Superior Court related to two break-ins in Easthampton, including one that resulted in the death of the homeowners’ toy poodle.
Angel Villanueva, 38, pleaded not guilty to charges of animal cruelty, two counts of breaking and entering in the daytime with intent to commit a felony, and two counts of larceny over $250 from a person over 60 or disabled.
Judge Richard J. Carey set bail at $30,000, as recommended by Assistant Northwestern District Attorney Jennifer H. Suhl and Villanueva’s court-appointed attorney, Lisa Lippiello of Northampton.
Villanueva already is being held at the Hampshire County Jail on $10,000 bail in connection with an alleged break-in in Huntington. During his arraignment in January, he denied charges of breaking and entering in the daytime with intent to commit a felony, larceny from a building and possession of a burglary tool.
The new charges stem from two break-ins on Loudville Road in Easthampton a few weeks apart. On Sept. 2, homeowners returned home to find that their house had been robbed and their 12-year-old toy poodle, Hannah, was dead at the bottom of the basement stairs. A veterinarian who examined the dog said she died of blunt force trauma to the head, according to Easthampton police.
Easthampton police also connected Villanueva to another break-in on Loudville Road Sept. 22, according to the indictment. Court records did not show what was taken in that incident.
Villanueva is accused of breaking into a home on Norwich Lake in Huntington Oct. 11. A neighbor reported the break-in and gave a description of the vehicle, which Northampton police located in a driveway on Route 66. Villanueva and his accomplice, Gamaliel Nazario, 34, fled on foot through woods and were arrested, according to court documents.
Suhl said in court Wednesday that the state had been planning to try Villanueva and Nazario together this month. As a result of the new charges and the possibility that Nazario may plead guilty, Suhl said she now wants to try them separately and group all the charges against Villanueva in connection with the three break-ins into one trial.
Rebecca Everett can be reached at [email protected].
