Arrests made in Lynn English stabbing; incident may have racial overtones

LYNN – A Lynn teen suspected of stabbing another teen with a machete outside Lynn English High School last week was ordered held without bail Monday.Miguel A. Roa, 18, of 59 Franklin St., was arrested Friday and charged with mayhem in connection with the March 4 stabbing.The criminal charge of mayhem means the alleged suspect “maliciously intended to maim or disfigure” the victim, said Lynn police spokesperson Lt. Dave Brown.The 16-year-old stabbing victim’s right thumb was “almost completely severed” from his hand and part of his face was slashed over his left eye, police said.Roa is due back in court March 18 for a dangerousness hearing.According to police, another teen claims he was walking with Roa outside Lynn English around 3:45 p.m. last Tuesday when a third teenager attacked them. Roa and his friend began to fight back when a fourth teen jumped in.At that point, Roa allegedly swung a machete out of his pants pocket and slashed that teen across the face.Roa’s friend, a Hispanic male, said the fight arose as part of an ongoing gang feud that began two years ago when the teens went to the Marshall Middle School, police said.The initial attacker, who is black, allegedly belongs to the “G-Block” gang, which “didn’t like bi-lingual kids,” according to police.Roa was arrested after police questioned him at his home in the presence of his mother. Roa at first denied being outside Lynn English when the stabbing occurred, but later admitted to being there, according to police.Police are investigating another attack that may have occurred in connection with the Lynn English stabbing.About an hour after the incident, police were called to Fayette Street, where two males jumped out of a blue van and attacked a 16-year-old boy. The victim was struck in the hand with a sharp object, but the wound was very minor, according to Brown.The following day, the Lynn Police Gang Unit pulled over a van matching the description of the vehicle used in the Fayette Street attack, and arrested Ausberto Castro, 17, of 381 Chatham St., Lynn for unlicensed operation and failing to signal.A 15-year-old male passenger was arrested for carrying a dangerous weapon – a machete.