Brothers Arrested After Assaulting Man Visiting Elder's Ex-Girlfriend

When Woonsocket Police officer Jason Berthelette caught up with James Lambert, 23, of 44 Oak St., apt. 3RDF outside the Our Pad bar on River Street April 13, the assault suspect admitted the crime.

"I hope I put him in the hospital," James said, according to Berthelette's report. As it happened, the victim, Joshua DaSilva, 20, was on his way to Rhode Island Hospital with serious injuries to his head and neck after being beaten and by James and his brother, Christopher Lambert, 21, at the second floor apartment of James's ex-girlfriend, Stephanie Sepulveda 19, also at 44 Oak St., according to Sepulveda and DaSilva.

Police were called to DaSilva's house at about 7:42 p.m. that day by the young man's mother, who told police her son had been attacked by two men at the address before making his way home.

Officer Joseph Brazil responded to Sepulveda's apartment to talk to her about the attack. Upon entering, he noted a half-inch wide drop of blood on the floor near the door, according to his report.

Sepulveda said she had invited DaSilva to her apartment and the two were there for about 10 minutes when her ex-boyfriend, James, also the father of her daugher, arrived. Sepulveda told DaSilva to hide in the bedroom and allowed James inside. James insisted on retrieving CDs from the bedroom, discovering DaSilva.

Sepuveda said James began yelling at DaSilva, telling him to "Get the f*** out," but when DaSilva tried to leave, James blocked his path. While James was yelling at DaSilva, James' brother, Christopher, who lives on the first floor of the building, entered and said, "F*** him up," after which James and Christopher charged him and knocked him to the floor, Sepuveda said, kicking him, mostly above the waist.

Sepuveda yelled at the pair to stop, but they didn't and she fled the building to her parent's home across the street. When she returned, DaSilva had left. 

Officer Daniel Lajoie, who interviewed DaSilva, reported that the man had trouble staying conscious during their talk while waiting for a rescue. He had visible injuries to his face and neck, and had difficulty speaking, suspecting that his jaw had been broken. 

DaSilva repeated Sepuveda's story, saying she had just intoduced him to her dog when James arrived. After James and Christopher beat him for a few minutes, he said, he lost consciousness. He woke up, stumbled to his feet and started down the stairs to leave the building, he said, according to Lajoie's report. On his way down the stairs, he said, one of the men kicked him, sending him sprawling down the steps, hitting his head and twisting his neck, briefly losing his vision. He was able to gain his feet again and leave, driving himself home. 

Officers learned that James and Christopher were often at the Our Pad bar on River Street, where Berthelette and other officers found them later that day, standing outside the bar. Berthelette reported that when he approached James, the man told him immediately, without prompting, "I saw another guy in my apartment near my baby. I told him to get out and he didn't so I kicked his a**. I hope I put him in the hospital." Berthelette noticed several abrasions on James' head and face.

James Lambert was arrested and charged with felony assault and domestic disorderly conduct. Christopher Lambert was also arrested outside the bar. He was charged with felony assault.