Report: Students at Somerville K-8 School Threatened

Somerville police arrested a 44-year-old man Friday afternoon who allegedly matches the description of someone who threatened four girls at the Healey School, a kindergarten- through eighth-grade school in Winter Hill.

According to a police report, four girls from the school went to the police station on Jan. 4 to complain that a man had threatened them on school property. The school's "resource officer"—who serves as a contact and liaison for members of the school community—interviewed the girls on Jan. 7, the report says.

According to the girls' account, a man had approached them in the parking lot, near the school's entrance, and told them, "I'll beat you. I'll kill you if you come to the projects. I'll rob you. I'll hit you in front of your friends, don't mess with this bad [expletive] Puerto Rican."

As a result of the girls' story, police set up surveillance at the school, according to the report.

At about 3:40 p.m. Friday, officers spotted a man who matched the description, the report says.

It says the man walked to the side entrance of the school and placed his jacket and backpack near several students who were sitting on a bench.

Officers approached the man and asked him to step away from the students, the report says.

At this point, the man, Victor Espada, became boisterous and agitated, and he began to yell, according to allegations in the police report.

The report says staff members from the school had to lead students back into the school "due to the volatility of the situation," and "traffic in the parking lot came to a standstill" as people watched what was happening.

Eventually, officers handcuffed Espada and he calmed down, the report says.

According to the report, officers found him with four yellow pills in a bottle labeled "Diazepam," but the bottle had someone else's name on the label.

Espada was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and drug possession.

Please remember that allegations contained in police reports do not indicate a conviction.