A Massachusetts child rape suspect fled after cutting off his GPS monitoring bracelet, then — days later — returned home, beat and tied up his stepfather before stealing his gun and about 200 rounds of ammunition, police say.
Gregory Lewis remained at large Saturday, according to Southbridge police, who warn that he “is still considered armed and dangerous.”
The 26-year-old was arrested on August 5, then arraigned the next day on four felony child rape charges, according to police. He was let go on bail and required to wear a monitoring bracelet.
But more than a month later, on September 15, police learned Lewis severed that bracelet and drove off in his parents’ 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee, according to Detective Sgt. Carlos Dingui.
Authorities announced on Facebook on September 20 — the same day he was spotted hundreds of miles away in Kentucky — that the Southbridge resident had fled and was wanted “for several outstanding felony arrest warrants.”
The next reported sighting of Lewis in his hometown — a community of about 17,000 people located 20 miles southwest of Worcester — was Thursday, the day of the assault on his stepfather, according to Dingui.
“This gentleman was literally shackled and held in the home, with a metal shackle,” Southbridge police Chief Daniel Charette told CNN affiliate WCVB. Dingui said Lewis handcuffed him to prevent police from being called.
Later that night, surveillance images released by police showed Lewis in a convenience store about 30 miles southwest in Vernon, Connecticut. It’s not known where he went next, including whether he was still in New England.
The suspect left Southbridge with his stepfather’s Beretta 9mm semiautomatic handgun, according to Dingui. He also took approximately 200 rounds of ammunition.
