SWAT team fails to find teen escapee

Police shut down part of Mattapan for several hours yesterday afternoon as heavily armed officers searched through a dilapidated house where officers thought a Department of Youth Services escapee was hiding. More than half a dozen SWAT team members went inside the three-decker, and an officer called over a loudspeaker for the suspect to surrender, but no one was found inside, said Deputy Superintendent William Gross. He would not identify the suspect because he is a juvenile. Gross said police arrived at Leston street, which is off Morton street, around 2 p.m. and ended the operation about two hours later.

The Police and Fire Departments are offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the capture of a fugitive wanted on murder charges in New Jersey, who they believe started a fire in a Cambridge high-rise on May 8. Tormu Prall, 35, of Trenton, N.J., was in police custody in Boston for two days in mid-May, but was released before fingerprint analysis revealed him to be the man charged with starting a fire that killed his brother in Trenton. Boston police later blamed the mistake on a computer glitch. Prall, who has used several aliases, told Boston police his name was Denzel Willington. Cambridge police officials said they knew him as Reginald Sanders.

A 26-year-old-man was shot and killed Sunday night in Brockton, according to a statement from the Plymouth district attorney. Bensney Toussaint was shot in the chest multiple times on Turner Street at 11 p.m., authorities said. He was pronounced dead at an area hospital. A spokeswoman for the district attorney said the shooting is under investigation by detectives from the Massachusetts State Police and Brockton police. By last night, no arrests had been made in the case.

A new commander has taken over at Westover Air Reserve Base. More than 1,000 members of the military and politicians were at the change-of-command ceremony Sunday during which Brigadier General Wade Farris Jr. handed his command to Colonel Robert Swain. The Republican newspaper of Springfield said Swain most recently served as chief of staff at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Georgia. Westover Air Reserve Base will host the Great New England Air Show Sept. 6 and 7. (AP)

A Republican challenger has started another campaign to unseat Representative Patrick Kennedy. Jon Scott says he will formally announce his campaign against the Democrat during a party meeting in Providence. Scott ran a long-shot campaign against Kennedy in 2006, after the Rhode Island congressman crashed his car into a barrier outside the US Capitol and pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of prescription drugs. Kennedy still took 69 percent of the vote. Scott has criticized Kennedy for expanding the government's role in healthcare and education. (AP)

Getting lost in the woods in New Hampshire soon could mean losing driver's, fishing, and hunting licenses under a new law aimed at making negligent hikers pay to be rescued. Legislators estimate that $42,000 of the $150,000 spent last year on search-and-rescue missions was attributable to negligence. Under the law, anyone determined to be negligent and who refuses to pay rescue costs would lose the licenses. (AP)

The US Army Corps of Engineers is waiving fees at day-use parks in New Hampshire and the rest of New England for one day. People can use the parks for free Saturday as part of a nationwide initiative to get people outdoors. Otter Brook Lake in Keene, Surry Mountain Lake in Keene, and Hopkinton-Everett Lakes in Hopkinton will be free for the day, Army Corps officials said. (AP)