Murder Charges In Workplace Shooting

A grand jury on Thursday indicted the man suspected of systematically executing seven co-workers at a Wakefield Internet company the day after Christmas with seven counts of murder and a variety of weapons charges.

Michael McDermott, a 42-year-old software engineer, allegedly used a semiautomatic rifle and 12-gauge shotgun to kill his co-workers at Edgewater Technology Inc. Prosecutors have said he was angry over a government demand that the company withdraw back taxes from his paychecks.

McDermott's lawyer, Kevin Reddington, has said McDermott was undergoing psychiatric treatment and taking medication, and that he may pursue an insanity defense.

Reddington did not immediately return a call for comment Thursday.

On Jan. 18, a Malden District Court judge ordered McDermott to Bridgewater State Hospital for a psychological evaluation. He has pleaded innocent to seven murder charges.

McDermott joined Edgewater in March and was described by coworkers as strange and quirky.

In the hours after the shooting, authorities searched McDermott's home and office space. In his Haverhill apartment they found bomb-making chemicals, blasting caps and magazines on explosives.

A Middlesex grand jury indicted McDermott on seven counts of murder, three counts unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of a large capacity firearm, and unlawful possession of a large capacity feeding device.

The Middlesex District Attorney's Office on Thursday released autopsy reports detailing which weapons were used and where the victims were shot.

Prosecutors said that McDermott went to Edgewater on Christmas Day and left behind a stash of weapons: an AK-47 semiautomatic rifle with an attached 60-round, large capacity feeding device; a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun; a .32-caliber semiautomatic pistol; a bolt action rifle and a bag filled with ammunition boxes.

The next day, at about 11:10 a.m., he took out the shotgun and the AK47, and, authorities said, began a rampage that claimed the lives of seven co-workers: Janice Hagerty, 46; Cheryl Troy, 50; Craig Wood, 29; Jennifer Bragg Capobianco, 29; Louis Javelle, 58; Paul Marceau, 36; and Rose Manfredi, 48.

Prosecutors said he did not have a license to carry any of the firearms.

The autopsies showed that:

• Troy was shot five times with the AK47, sustaining gunshot wounds to the head, right arm and torso;

• Hagerty was shot twice with the AK47, receiving wounds to her head and torso;

• Javelle was shot three times with the AK47 and the shotgun, receiving wounds to his head and torso;

• Wood was shot five times with the AK47 and was wounded in the head, legs and right arm;

• Capobianco was shot four times in the torso with the AK47;

• Marceau was shot six times with the AK47 and the shotgun to his leg, right arm and torso;

• Manfredi was shot five times with the AK47 and the shotgun in he legs and head.

McDermott is tentatively scheduled to be arraigned in Middlesex Superior Court on Feb. 22.

McDermott was born Michael McDermod Martinez in Plymouth to Raymond and Rosemary Martinez. He reportedly changed his name because he wanted to sound Irish, not Hispanic.

In 1978, he joined the Navy, and he served six years aboard the nuclear submarine USS Narwhal. He was an electrician and was honorably discharged as a petty officer second class.

In 1982, he began work as auxiliary power plant operator at Maine Yankee nuclear power plant, staying until he was fired in 1988. During that time, he showed signs of mental illness. In 1987, he tried to commit suicide and filed a workers' compensation claim after his was fired, citing his "stress-induced suicide attempt." He settled for $85,000.

He later worked in research and development for nearly 10 years at Duracell, where he left voluntarily in February.

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