FITCHBURG, MASS. (WHDH) - A man charged in connection with the death of 5-year-old Jeremiah Oliver was back in court Friday, where prosecutors revealed new details about the murder.
Oliver was reported missing in 2013. His body was then found inside a suitcase a year later on the side of a highway in Sterling.
In court on Friday, prosecutors said 32-year-old Alberto Sierra, who was the boyfriend of Oliver’s mother, violently smashed Oliver’s head against a floor. Prosecutors also said Sierra first attacked Oliver’s mother before he killed the boy.
“The child, who had been relegated to a closet in the kitchen to live, to sleep and to spend his time, came from that closet area and went at this defendant and said something to the effect of ‘Don’t hurt my mommy,” one prosecutor said.
“As a result of that, the observation by Ms. Oliver was that this defendant took the child by the head, slammed his head onto the floor and the child was no longer moving,” the same prosecutor continued.
Prosecutors said both Sierra and Oliver’s mother later placed Oliver’s body in a bag. Oliver’s mother is also set to face charges in connection with her son’s death.
Sierra is already serving 6 to 7 years in prison after pleading guilty to assault and child endangerment charges back in 2017.
He needed to sit in court Friday as his defense said he has an aggressive form of rheumatoid arthritis and should be given the option to post bail so he can continue with clinical trials.
The judge did not agree and ordered Sierra held without bail. Sierra is due back in court next month.
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