Unit 1012 Cover Photo

Unit 1012 Cover Photo

Saturday, May 5, 2018

IN LOVING MEMORY OF TWO BOSTON DOCTORS: RICHARD FIELDS AND LINA BOLANOS (DIED: MAY 5, 2017)


            Every year on May 5, Unit 1012 will always remember Dr. Richard Fields and his wife, Dr. Lina Bolanos, two Boston Doctors who were murdered on May 5, 2017.

To contribute to Jason Field’s fundraising campaign, visit crowdrise.com/jasonfield8 or to contribute to Alex Forrest-Hay’s campaign, crowdrise.com/alexanderforrest-hay.


Dr. Richard Field and Dr. Lina Bolanos had their throats slit by Bampumim Teixeira.
Two engaged doctors were found with their throats slit in their $1.9 million South Boston condo.

A former security guard convicted in connection with bank robberies, Bampumim Teixeira, is accused in the double murder of Lina Bolanos, 38, and Richard Field, 49, and police say the suspect ripped up photos throughout the condo, leaving a bloody and grisly scene behind him.

Prosecutors indicated robbery may be the motive, according to WBZ. However, the prosecutor did not specifically say that in the suspect’s arraignment on May 8, although he did allege that the suspect was encountered in dark clothes and gloves and that police found a bag of jewelry, presumably Bolanos’, on the condo floor.

The homicides in South Boston resulted in police shooting Teixeira at the door of the apartment, authorities say. The suspect is expected to survive. He knew the victims, police said, but the District Attorney walked back the comments that the suspect and victims likely knew each other, saying there was no evidence of that. He also said that Teixeira did not fire a weapon at police.

The suspect is an immigrant who was born in Guinea-Bissau in West Africa and who was homeless for a time, reports The Boston Globe. Teixeira was a lawful permanent resident of the U.S., according to the DA’s spokesman.

Armed Robber, Bampumim Teixeira, Given Light Sentence To Prevent Deportation, Brutally Kills Two Doctors At Home
On May 11, 2017

Boston, MA –  Prior plea deals that allowed Bampumim Teixeira to keep his green card and prevent his deportation cost two innocent doctors their lives last Friday, May 5.

According to The Boston Herald, police were called to the apartment after being notified by a friend of Dr. Fields that he had received a text message begging for help.  Upon arrival, the suspect, Teixeira, opened fire on police, and was shot three times; he remains hospitalized.

Both victims, Dr. Richard Fields, age 49, and Dr. Lina Bolanos, age 38, were found bound, and with their throats cut. Teixeira forced Dr. Fields to watch in a mirror as his throat was cut.

Teixeira was arraigned in his hospital room on Monday, May 8, and he appeared unsconscious throughout the proceeding. His attorney, who represented him on his previous charges, entered not guilty pleas.  He is expected to recover; unfortunately, his victims won’t.

In 2016, Teixeira was arrested by the FBI Bank Robbery Task Force for robbing a branch of Citizens Bank.  He threatened to shoot up the bank if he didn’t get the money he demanded.

The teller thought he had a gun and feared for her life.  He only got $212, and a dye pack.

While being questioned about that bank robbery, he told police that he was also wanted for a 2014 robbery of the same bank.  He got $600 that time, also while threatening to shoot up the bank.  He was so helpful that he told detectives he had seen his wanted picture on the Mass Most Wanted website.  Teixeira was shown the wanted picture of himself and told detectives that was him.

With two bank robbery charges, he should have served a lengthy prison sentence and then been deported, but he wasn’t.  Under an agreed-upon deal, the prosecutor and the defense attorney allowed Teixeira to plead to two “larceny from person” charges instead of two bank robbery charges.

Plea deals like this are becoming more and more common as prosecutors in Palo Alto, New York, and Baltimore have all recently made the news for reducing sentences to prevent deportations. Legal non-citizen immigrants who are convicted of crimes with a sentence of 365 days or more are deported.

Recommendations were made to Judge Lisa A. Grant that Teixeira be given a sentence of 364 days in jail, one day less than a full year, with nine months to serve, credit for time served of 78 days, and the rest suspended for three years.

The most Honorable Judge Grant accepted the plea. This is the same Judge Grant who is fairly new to the bench, having been a defense attorney and public counselor services director in her previous career.  She has also stated that she does not favor mandatory minimum sentences, because they take away a judge’s discretion.

What was also interesting about the plea deal was that Judge Grant accepted it orally, and did not require it to be in writing.

Both the prosecutor and defense attorney asked that the first robbery case be marked “guilty filed,” which exempts Teixeira from immigration penalties such as deportation.

A spokesman for the Suffolk County DA said that the plea was not accepted to shield Teixeira from deportation. However, it is clear that the plea was designed to do just that.

Outside of aggravated felonies, federal law states that any green-card holder like Teixeira who is convicted of two or more crimes involving “moral turpitude” is deportable.  But since his case was filed as “guilty filed”, in a strangely retroactive move, it doesn’t count.

Federal courts have not yet acknowledged “guilty filed” as grounds to deport an illegal immigrant.  As such, ICE said that it “has no legal role in this case at this time but will continue to monitor its progress.”

It is not known yet what connection Teixeira had to the murdered couple, but he once held a security job at their condominium complex.

And this was not just a robbery gone wrong.  It is believed that there was a connection between one of Dr. Fields’ patients and Teixeira, although that is still being investigated.

Deportation rules are in place for public safety. Any prosecutor who intentionally circumvents those rules is giving violent felons permission to roam free.

Do you think that there should be a federal law which prohibits plea deals to prevent deportation?

Family of slain Boston doctors: Remember their lives, not how they died
By Karma Allen
May 9, 2017, 2:23 AM ET

The families of the two Boston doctors who were killed in a suspected double murder in their penthouse apartment last week asked the public on Monday to remember the couple for the lives they lived and not for how they died.

Richard Field, 49, and Lina Bolanos, 38, -- described by family as a loving couple with an infectious joy for life -- were killed in their South Boston apartment last Friday night when a man who they, apparently, did not know walked in and attacked them, police said.

The two were planning to get married soon, according to their families.

In a statement released on Monday, Field’s family reflected on the lives of both doctors and asked that they be remembered for the good that they did in the world.

"We want to remember Richard and Lina for who they were, not how they died," the family said. "Their impact in the world -- in the lives of those who they loved, those who loved them, and the patients that they cared for -- is the real newsworthy story."


The family described the two as “loving” and “vital people,” who cared for the children in their extended families as if they were their own.

"As doctors, they dedicated their professional lives to alleviating suffering and ensuring the safety of those most vulnerable—children undergoing surgery," the statement said.



The family said that the couple would often find "the time to take interest in each and every one of us no matter what was on their plate.”

Bolanos worked as a pediatric anesthesiologist at Massachusetts Eye and Ear in Boston, according to the hospital.

"Dr. Bolanos was an outstanding pediatric anesthesiologist and a wonderful colleague in the prime of both her career and life," John Fernandez, the hospital's president and CEO, said in a statement over the weekend. "We will do all we can to support their families and our staff members who are processing this senseless tragedy and grieving an enormous loss."

Field "was a guiding vision" at North Shore Pain Management, an entity he helped create back in 2010, according to the practice. Prior to that, he worked as an anesthesiologist and pain management specialist at Beverly Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital.

"Dr. Field was noted for his tireless devotion to his patients, staff and colleagues," the practice said in a statement. "He was a valued member of the medical community and a tremendous advocate for his patients."

The suspect in the slaying, 30-year-old Bampumim Teixeira of Chelsea, Massachusetts, was taken into custody at the crime scene, according to police, who said they recovered a bag containing the woman’s jewelry and a replica of a firearm from the apartment.

A plea of not guilty was entered on his behalf and he was ordered held without bail at his arraignment in his room at Tufts Medical Center on Monday. He is scheduled to appear in court on June 8.

The couple's family asked for the public to make a "tribute donation in Richard and Lina's memory" to the Doctors Without Borders Organization.

"We will remember and celebrate their passion, gentility, and extraordinary kindness forever," the family said in their statement. "[Th]eir loss will be felt by family and loved ones across the world."

ABC News' Joshua Hoyos and Aaron Katersky contributed to this report.


Prosecutor Reveals New Details In Murders Of 2 South Boston Doctors

BOSTON (CBS) — A Chelsea man was ordered held without bail Monday as new information was revealed about the brutal killings of two engaged doctors in their South Boston luxury condominium earlier this year.

Bampumim Teixeira, 30, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment on an indictment in the murders of 38-year-old Dr. Lina Bolanos and 49-year-old Dr. Richard Field.

In court Monday, prosecutor John Pappas described how Teixeira had knowledge of the layout of the couple’s building because he was a security guard there briefly in 2016.

Pappas said Teixeira was seen lurking around the condominium complex at about 2:40 p.m. and in the garage around 4 p.m. on May 5, the day of the murders.

Bolanos returned home around 5 p.m. and Field around 6:30 that evening.

According to Pappas, Teixeira bound each of them with duct tape and used a large carving knife to kill them.

Police were called to the apartment around 8:38 p.m. after Field texted a friend to call 911 because there was a gunman in the house.

When officers arrived they found keys to the apartment outside the door. Once inside, they found the lights off and then were encountered by a man with what appeared to be a gun.

Pappas said the officers fired two shots, wounding Teixeira.  Police later found a bag and clothes that matched the man seen lurking around the building earlier in the day.  Officers also found two fake guns and a backpack full of Bolanos’ jewelry, according to investigators.
A short time later, police went through the couple’s home and found the bodies.

“They made the grizzly discovery of two people in separate areas of the residence,” Pappas said.  “Both individuals, later identified as Lina Bolanos and Richard Field, were bound, apparently at various times by various means. They had both sustained massive trauma and, after being examined by emergency medical personnel on scene, were declared deceased.”

Family and friends of the couple were in court Monday, many of them crying as the prosecutor described the timeline of events.

The indictments read in Suffolk Superior Court charged two counts each of first-degree murder, armed robbery, and kidnapping, and one count of armed home invasion. These indictments superseded the earlier case against Teixeria in South Boston Municipal Court.
Teixeria is due back in court September 12.

Port man to run marathon in slain couple's memory
Newburyport man to honor slain brother, fiancée

NEWBURYPORT — Running the Boston Marathon had always been on Jason Field’s bucket list, but when tragedy struck last year, the idea took on a much deeper meaning for him. 

On May 5, Jason’s brother, Dr. Richard Field, and his fiancée, Dr. Lina Bolanos, were murdered in their luxurious South Boston condominium. The unusual story sent shock waves across the country but even more affected were their families, including Jason, who remembers them as kind, generous anesthesiologists. 

“My brother was a second father to my children and his fiancée doted on my kids,” said Jason, 48, who lives in Newburyport with his wife and four children. “They were so giving and caring.”

After immigrating from England as children with their mother, Jason and Richard were raised in Beverly Hills, California. It was there, surrounded by a crowd of their well-to-do peers and school friends, that the two brothers were inspired to pursue what they considered to be “the American Dream,” making an effort to help and support each other along the way.

“I think for many years the two of us were pushing each other mentally and encouraging each other to succeed,” Jason said. “We were also helping each other along the way, and coaching each other as well. We were tight.”

Even after Richard’s death, his sense of encouragement continued on and drove Jason to pick up a bib for this year’s marathon and run for Massachusetts Eye and Ear’s Operation Airway team.

Jason will be making the 26.2-mile trek in memory of his brother and fiancée, who worked as a pediatric anesthesiologist at Mass Eye and Ear and was beloved for her gentle way with children.

“She’d make the parents feel very at ease and very comfortable as she was taking their child away to administer the anesthesia,” Jason said. “My brother had similar warm methods of making people feel very comfortable when going to him for their ailments.”

In the spirit of the couple’s kindness, Jason joined Operation Airway’s effort to raise $300,000 to fund missions for Mass Eye and Ear specialists to travel to Colombia, Bolanos’ homeland, to perform essential airway surgeries on underprivileged children and families.

He set a personal target of raising $15,000 but quickly surpassed his goal due to an outpouring of support from the community. To date, he has raised more than $21,000 for Mass Eye and Ear.

Running alongside Jason will be his longtime friend and fellow Englishman, Alex Forrest-Hay, with whom he has been running through neighborhoods in Newburyport and surrounding communities since late 2017 to prepare for the marathon.

With neither ever having run a road race before, they admit that Patriots Day is sure to be rife with challenges but said they are both nervous and excited for the event. 

“I’m a bit undercooked but still very excited about running the race, and more importantly, about supporting Jason and the charity,” Forrest-Hay said, noting he is close to reaching his $10,000 fundraising goal.

“Richard had a great habit of getting people to do things they’d never done before, so this is a great opportunity,” he said.

After nearly a full year that has been extremely trying and filled with melancholy for Jason and his family, the physical pain of running a marathon seems manageable — even though he recently sustained a groin injury while training.

“From a physical standpoint, I’ve been told that you can do it — people can run 26 miles,” Jason said. “I’m sure I’ll be getting waves of emotions throughout the run, and I have no idea how it’s going to affect me.”

When the race is on, Jason said he believes his brother will be there in spirit to help him cross the finish line.

“I know he’s going to be pushing me when I feel like I’m hitting a wall, or complaining to myself about my injury,” Jason said. “He’d say, ‘Look at all these people that turned out watching, you can’t let them down, you can’t let me down.’ That’s the polite way he’d respond.”

To contribute to Jason Field’s fundraising campaign, visit crowdrise.com/jasonfield8 or to contribute to Alex Forrest-Hay’s campaign, crowdrise.com/alexanderforrest-hay.


Staff writer Jack Shea can be reached via email at jshea@newburyportnews.com or by phone at 978-961-3154. Follow him on Twitter @iamjackshea.

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