On April 25, Milford resident Ryan Sweatt was charged with first degree murder in the death of Destini Decoff. According to authorities, Mr. Sweatt, in an apparent act of road rage, allegedly intentionally struck Destini Decoff as she was walking along Hayden Rowe Street on April 4. Ms. Decoff was found unconscious and breathing at the scene, but two days later died from her injuries.

The Commonwealth defines first degree murder as “committed with deliberately premeditated malice aforethought, or with extreme atrocity or cruelty, or in the commission or attempted commission of a crime punishable with death or imprisonment for life.”

Framingham District Court judge Damon Borrelli found probable cause to support the district attorney’s charge that Mr. Sweatt had indeed murdered Ms. Decoff. Sweatt remains in custody at the Billerica House of Corrections and will face arraignment next week.

According to eyewitness accounts, around 6:15 PM on Thursday, April 4, two mid-size sedans were heading south on Route 85 toward Milford. The lead vehicle, a Honda Civic driven by Mr. Sweatt, came to a stop just past the Granite Street intersection, and the second car, containing five passengers, including Ms. Decoff, stopped behind it, leaving very little room between their bumpers.

With the vehicles stopped, four men and Ms. Decoff exited their vehicle and began advancing toward Mr. Sweatt’s car. Reportedly one of the men brandished a knife. As the five approached, Sweatt moved his vehicle forward about 15 feet. He then abruptly put the vehicle in reverse, attempting to crush one or more of the group between the cars. But they jumped out of the way, and Sweatt lightly glanced the other car. Sweatt then sped off, toward Milford.

Mr. Sweatt turned his car around and attempted to strike the vehicle’s occupants again, but failed. He then performed another U-Turn, and accelerating, struck Ms. Decoff with his vehicle. The woman came to rest an estimated 30 feet from the point of impact, directly in front of diners at Cornell’s Irish Pub, who rushed to provide aid.

>> RELATED: Read the Full Account

New Details

HopNews has spoken with several sources within law enforcement off the record seeking to get answers to outstanding questions. Here are the new details we know.

• A correction: HopNews initially reported that Mr. Sweatt had called 911 to report that he was being tailgated by another car, which is why Hopkinton PD was on the scene so quickly. This is in fact not true. According to insiders, Officer Shannon Beloin was on duty and was speed checking vehicles on Hayden Rowe at the time. Beloin was reportedly drawn to the scene when she heard the sound of tires screeching. It was pure chance that Beloin was there at that particular moment, and she was able to prevent Mr. Sweatt from fleeing the scene.
• Eyewitnesses initially reported that two of the men in the vehicle with Ms. Decoff were identified as her brothers. This has now been confirmed to be false. The occupants of Ms. Decoff’s vehicle were not related.
• Despite living just 5 blocks away from each other, there is no evidence that Ms. Decoff and Mr. Sweatt knew each other.
• Although he worked for a Hopkinton-based company, Mr. Sweatt was actually located at the Marlborough office. As to why he was in Hopkinton on that particular day, law enforcement officials speculate that he was cutting through from I-495 to his apartment in Milford. 
• Law enforcement officers did recover a knife at the scene, and has video evidence that it was handled by one of the members of Ms. Decoff’s vehicle. This lends credence to Mr. Sweatt’s statement to police that he felt threatened for his life.
• Law enforcement officers describe Mr. Sweatt as a “quiet, mild mannered guy”. “You would not expect something like this from him,” said one officer. 
• A GoFundMe page was set up by Ms. Decoff’s mother and has to date raised $20,287 from 416 individual donors. The page says donations will go to pay for funeral arrangements. Services for Ms. Decoff were held on Wednesday, April 17.