Teen suspect in social worker slaying sent for competency evaluation

By Eric Moskowitz and Maria Cramer, Globe staff

NORTH ANDOVER -- A 53-year-old social worker, described by a co-worker as a “special person,’’ was identified today as the woman allegedly killed by her patient inside an apartment here Wednesday evening.

Diruhi S. Mattian was allegedly stabbed by 19-year-old Thomas Belanger, said Steve O'Connell, spokesman for Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett.

Belanger was sent to Bridgewater State Hospital for a competency evaluation late today.

Mattian was working for Family Continuity Inc., a social service agency with an office in Lawrence, said O'Connell.

Mattian was the director of the Lawrence FLEX program, which was designed to keep adolescents with chronic mental illnesses in their homes while receiving treatment. "The services are primarily aimed at keeping the children safely at home with their families, in their community, out of residential programs, and away from hospital care,'' according to the program summary posted under Mattian's name.

Earl Stuck, executive director of Family Continuity, where Mattian had worked for a decade, said it was not unusual for Mattian to visit a patient in the evening. Many of the social workers and therapists on the 250-member staff visit the homes of overwhelmed clients to provide counseling services or help with menial tasks, like paying for bills or planning the family's dinner menu for the week.

"She was a very special person," Stuck said. "I hope people realize the hard work that people like Diruhi do, and how much it benefits all of us."

The state's Department of Mental Health and Child and Adolescent Services is a primary funder for the FLEX program, according to the website.

Belanger is charged with first-degree murder, but has not yet been formally arraigned. Instead, Lawrence District Court Judge Thomas E. Brennan ordered him to undergo a 20 day mental competency evaluation at Bridgewater State Hospital during a brief hearing Lawrence General Hospital. Belanger was treated for self-inflicted stab wounds.

Mattian was a 1996 graduate of the social work school at Simmons College in Boston where Stefan Krug, the school’s dean, described her as “a wonderful student, beloved supervisor, and exemplary social worker.''

In a statement, he added, "we understand that Diruhi was deeply committed to her clients and didn’t shirk from the challenges of working with children and families in their communities. She will be remembered with great affection by all of us in the professional social work community.’’

Mattian lived on Veranda Avenue in Wilmington, where neighbors recalled her as a cheerful woman who was devoted to her work helping others. They said she was the mother of two daughters, both of whom are now adults. They said she was divorced in the past year or so.

“She was always cheerful, no matter what, ‘’ said Patrick Abruzzio, who lives nearby. His wife, Doreen, added, "She was a dedicated therapist, that's for sure.''

North Andover police were called to the complex on Walker Road at about 6 p.m. and found the woman lying in the doorway of an apartment, North Andover Police Chief Richard Stanley said Wednesday.

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