Salem Attempted Murder Suspect Ordered Held Without Bail

An man facing attempted murder charges out of Salem was ordered held without bail at his arraignment Wednesday, according to The Eagle-Tribune.

Walton Valentin, 31, of 41 Hardy St., Methuen, MA was arrested in November after he was found hiding in the bathroom of a New York City deli. He had been the subject of an intensive manhunt by Massachusetts State Police and police in Salem and Lawrence, Andover and Methuen, MA.

Valentin was wanted in connection with an incident in Salem on Nov. 9, when Salem Police responded to the Park View Inn on South Broadway for a report of a domestic disturbance with a male armed with a handgun. The suspect – Valentin – had fled prior to police arrival by stealing the victim's minivan, and officers found the female victim suffering from several severe head injuries. 

The victim told police the incident started in Lawrence, MA when Valentin jumped into her car and held a gun to her stomach and began threatening to kill her family back in the Dominican Republic. The victim reported that once they were in the room, Valentin pointed the gun at her and pulled the trigger, but the gun jammed. He then choked her and struck her repeatedly over the head with the gun.