Man, 60, wrongly arrested in 2019 for 30-year-old cold case murder of young girl SUES cops claiming they were fame-hungry 'media hounds' who manipulated DNA evidence to frame him, as he says accusation left him unemployed and homeless
A man who was wrongfully arrested in 2019 for the 1988 murder of a 10-year-old girl is suing the police officers who arrested him, claiming they were fame-hungry and framed him to crack the cold case.
On Tuesday Joao 'John' Monteiro, 60, filed a lawsuit in Rhode Island District Court claiming he was wrongfully accused, framed and arrested for the murder of Christine Cole.
Cole was just 10 when she disappeared in January 1988 outside a market on Slater Street in Pawtucket. Her body was found on a beach in Warwick 54 days later.
Monteiro was arrested in July 2019 by Pawtucket police with officials saying a breakthrough in DNA technology connected him to the crime and he lived in the apartment above the market where Cole was last seen.
However, just seven months later the charges were dropped because the DNA evidence was too broad and did not specifically point to Monteiro as the killer.
On Tuesday Joao 'John' Monteiro, 60, filed a lawsuit in US District Court claiming he was wrongfully accused, framed and arrested for the 1988 murder of Christine Cole . Monteiro was arrested in July 2019 by Pawtucket police with officials saying a breakthrough in DNA technology connected him to the crime but the charges were dropped seven months later because the DNA evidence was too broad
In the lawsuit Monteiro names four members of the Pawtucket Police Department including Detectives Susan Cormier , Trevor Lefebvre, Major Daniel Mullen and Chief Tina Goncalves. He claims Cormier was a 'media hound who frequently issued press releases in order to be in the limelight.'
In the lawsuit Monteiro, an immigrant from Cape Verde and father-of-four, names four members of the police force – Detectives Susan Cormier, Trevor Lefebvre, Major Daniel Mullen and Chief Tina Goncalves - who he claims were fame hungry and wanted attention for closing the case.
The suit also names Tamara Wong, the employee with the Rhode Island Department of Health who supplied DNA Evidence related to the case.
He accused Det. Cormier of being 'a media hound who frequently issued press releases in order to be in the limelight.'
The lawsuit further says that Defendant Cormier 'wanted publicity for solving "cold cases."'
Lawyers noted that Cormier and other Pawtucket officers created a playing-card deck of 52 cold cases that she boldly declared she would solve.
When cops arrested Monteiro in 2019 she said to reporters: 'I hope this is a message to the people responsible for these crimes: We are coming for you.'
Monteiro claims that officers with the Pawtucket Police Department took advantage of his limited English to make it appear that he lived near the crime scene and a state lab technician misrepresented DNA evidence to obtain an arrest warrant.
The lawsuit further says that Defendant Cormier 'wanted publicity for solving "cold cases"'
In the lawsuit, filed by Chicago-based firm Loevy & Loevy, Monteiro said he had never knew Cole, never interacted with her and no legitimate evidence tied him to the crime.
The civil complaint claims he was arrested without probable cause, deprived of his constitutional rights, falsely imprisoned and slandered.
Monteiro's lawyers say the arrest has changed his life for the worse.
He lost his job of 15 years and was ultimately left homeless. They’re seeking damages, attorney’s fees and other costs.
The lawsuit claims the DNA evidence used in the case was misrepresented or falsified to obtain an arrest.
'This DNA profile potentially pointed to any number of men who may have had some connection to the area. For some unknown reason, the Pawtucket defendants decided to target Plaintiff, an innocent man,' the lawsuit seen by DailyMail.com said.
Monteiro pictured afte rhe was charged with murder for the death of Christine Cole. Those charges were later dropped. Monteiro says his life has been upended since the accusation and he lost his job and was rendered homeless
Monteiro's attorneys further allege he was targeted for his race.
'But for his race, ethnicity and/or national origin, defendants would not have targeted him for unlawful arrest,' the lawyers wrote.
On the same note the complaint has pointed to several previous legal actions led by people of color against the police department for false arrests or imprisonment.
Acting Public Safety Director and Police Chief Tina Goncalves, who is named in the lawsuit, defended the department in a statement shared with DailyMail.com.
'Cold cases always have a high degree of difficulty given the time that elapses. Detective Sue Cormier and the Pawtucket Police Department have a passion for solving these cases and providing closure to the families of the victims. In this particular case, the Department met the burden of proof for probable cause with new testing for the DNA sample to administer an arrest,' she said.
'The Attorney General’s Office looked at the findings and stated that they would require more information. The Pawtucket Police Department is working closely with the Assistant Attorney General assigned to the case and remains committed to giving the family of 10-year-old Christine Cole closure. At this point, the individual continues to be a prime suspect in the case,' she added.
Pawtucket police reopened the three-decade old case in 2018 and conducted a DNA analysis of blood reportedly found on Cole’s pants.
That analysis showed a potential link to Monteiro’s son, who was born five years after Christine’s death and whose DNA was in the criminal database, according to The Providence Journal.
The DNA profile could have been used to indicate a potential link to any relative on his son’s paternal side but did not directly implicate anyone, the lawsuit says.