A Lynn man who is accused of assaulting his pregnant girlfriend hours before prosecutors say his brother stabbed her to death was ordered held without bail during his dangerousness hearing on Wednesday.
Judge Ina Howard-Hogan ruled that Brendon Vozzella, 24 was a danger to the community and ordered him held for the next 120 days, court records show. Vozzella is charged with assault and battery on a pregnant person and assault and battery on a household member.
Brendon Vozzella’s brother, Zachary Vozzella, is charged with the murder of Brendon Vozzella’s girlfriend, Brianna Welsh, 25, who was three months pregnant at the time of her death. Prosecutors say Zachary Vozzella had been living with the couple for several months and witnessed the assault his brother is accused of.
Brendon Vozzella does not face any criminal charges in connection with his girlfriend’s death, and prosecutors have said he was in police custody at the time she was killed. He was released from custody at the Lynn Police station after 8:30 p.m. on July 30, and records of key fob entries into the apartment he shared with Welsh show no activity after 8:16 p.m. that night.
Welsh was found dead in the apartment on the morning of July 31 after her mother asked a building supervisor to conduct a wellness check, according to a statement of facts filed in Lynn District Court.
When the supervisor and a maintenance worker entered the apartment, they found Welsh on the floor in the apartment’s bedroom with a cut to her neck, according to the filing. Lynn police later found cuts to her legs, slits in her clothing and her abdominal area. Officers also saw blood stains on “several areas” of the bed near Welsh.
During his arraignment on the murder charge on Aug. 1, Zachary Vozzella entered a plea of not guilty and was ordered held without bail, court records show. He will return to court on Sept. 10.
Brendon Vozzella’s next court date is Sept. 5, for discovery compliance and jury election, records show.
A GoFundMe to raise money for Welsh’s funeral costs has crossed $16,000 as of Wednesday afternoon and appeared well on its way to surpassing its $18,000 goal.
In the fundraiser, Welsh was remembered by her mother, Claudia, as a “bright shining star, that went out before her time.”
“Brianna was looking forward this week to find out and share with her family and friends if her baby was going to be a boy or a girl,” the fundraiser reads. “Tragically, she has been taken from us, murdered in her own home.”
