Authorities ID suspect in Chelsea strip club slaying

January 30, 2008 05:36 PM Email| Comments (0)| Text size – +

By Globe Staff

The suspect in a fatal shooting last week inside an infamous Chelsea strip club is a 19-year-old from East Boston who was convicted as a juvenile of shooting at three teenagers, the Suffolk district attorney announced today.

Investigators are seeking the assistance of the public in finding Jesse “Fat Jesse” Camacho, District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said in a statement.

Camacho is accused of opening fire during a fight inside King Arthur's Lounge early Friday morning. The shooting killed Jeff Santiago, 28, and sent 25 to 50 patrons and employees diving to the floor.

Conley said in a statement that he had authrorized a warrant for Camacho's arrest "based on significant and credible evidence gathered during an extremely active investigation into Mr. Santiago's death."

Camacho pleaded guilty in Boston Juvenile Court in January 2006 to three counts of assault with a dangerous weapon and unlawful possession of a firearm. He admitted to pulling the trigger in a drive-by shooting on Everett Avenue in Chelsea on Jan. 6, 2005. Camacho used a handgun to shoot at three teenagers, none of whom was hit.

Judge Leslie E. Harris ordered Camacho committed to the custody of the Department of Youth Services until his 18th birthday, which was May 7, 2006.

During Friday’s shooting at King Arthur's Lounge, a 29-year-old Everett man was also wounded in the upper thigh, and a 41-year-old Charlestown man was hit in the calf.

The bar was the scene of a brawl on July 23, 1982, that began with an argument between Alfred J. Mattuchio and off-duty Everett police officer John McLeod. The officer left the lounge, then returned with several other police officers, armed with nightsticks, baseball bats, and tire irons, according to news reports. They attacked a dozen patrons and employees, and Vincent J. Bordonaro was beaten to death.

Four Everett officers were indicted in the death. One was acquitted; McLeod and another former officer are serving life sentences for second-degree murder; and the fourth was released after serving several years for manslaughter, according to newspaper accounts.