A 33-year-old Massachusetts man has been granted parole after killing a man in Waltham when he was 18.
Shaquan Jacobs was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after pleading guilty to second-degree murder on Oct. 2, 2012, in Middlesex Superior Court.
Prior to the robbery on Sept. 30, 2010, Jacobs, Wallace Duarte and Benjamin Peirce went to the Dollar Store in Waltham to buy supplies to commit the robbery. The men, including Daniel Louis, then got a gun, according to the Massachusetts Parole Board.
The group first attempted to rob a home but were unsuccessful. Peirce said Adam Coveney sold Percocet and suggested robbing him instead.
Around 11 p.m. on Sept. 30, 2010, Jacobs, Duarte, Peirce and Louis robbed and beat 29-year-old Coveney. Although the plan was to scare Coveney with the gun, Louis shot and killed him during the robbery.
After the killing, Jacobs hid a firearm in his backyard.
Jacobs has been incarcerated for 15 years. During this time, earned his BA from Tufts, invested in his rehabilitation and completed multiple programs, including the NEADS program. He also dissociated from his gang in 2018, according to the parole board.
“Mr. Jacobs has a significant support system and a re-entry plan to assist him with successful re-entry into the community,” the parole board wrote, adding that his mother and numerous members of the community spoke in support of parole.
The board voted unanimously to grant parole. He will first be required to spend six months in a lower security facility.
