A man has been arrested in the gruesome murder of a 5-year-old nine years ago in Massachusetts.
The body of Jeremiah Oliver was found stuffed inside a suitcase on the side of Interstate 190 in April 2014.
Prior to the discovery of his body, Oliver was reported missing in December 2013. However, the missing person status was months late – Oliver hadn’t been seen since April of that year.
Alberto Sierra Jr., 32, has been charged in the child’s murder and the disinterment of his body. He is the former boyfriend of Oliver’s mother.
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Alberto Sierra Jr. is arraigned in Worcester Superior Court Thursday. (Rick Cinclair/Telegram & Gazette Staff/USA Today Network)
In February 2016, Oliver’s death was ruled a homicide by a state medical examiner – the autopsy found the child died of “homicidal violence of undetermined causes.”
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A woman leaves a candle during a prayer vigil for 5-year-old Jeremiah Oliver in 2014. (Jim Davis/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
Oliver and his family were supposed to be living under the supervision of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families due to reports of neglect and abuse.
After the body was discovered in 2014, the department launched an investigation into the case.
Three employees were fired after it was discovered one social worker assigned to the family failed to make required visits to the home for months.
Jose Oliver, center, and Sandrino Oliver, left, spoke to the media following the 2013 hearing for Alberto Sierra at Fitchburg District Court in connection with the disappearance of Jose’s son, Jeremiah Oliver. (Aram Boghosian for The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
Elsa Oliver, mother of Jeremiah, pleaded guilty to assault and battery of her two children in 2017. She was sentenced to seven years of prison time.
Sierra was found guilty of assaulting Elsa Oliver and her children in the same year. He was sentenced to seven years of incarceration but was not in prison at the time of his arrest on Wednesday.
