New England Division Headline: Fall River murder, arson trial of Providence man ends in hung jury

  • Source: WJAR-TV NBC 10 Providence
  • Published: 12/06/2016 09:03 AM

The trial of a Rhode Island man charged with killing a man whose body was found in his burned out Massachusetts home has ended with a hung jury. The Standard-Times reported that a New Bedford Superior Court judge on Monday declared a mistrial in the case of Sayyid Coggins after several failed attempts to break a deadlocked jury. The Providence man was charged with murder and arson in the April 2014 death of 29-year-old Justin Downey. Downey's body was found by firefighters who extinguished a fire at his home. Coggins left the area and was tracked down in Georgia. A spokesman for Bristol District Attorney Thomas Quinn III says a retrial is planned. Coggins' attorney, Frank Camera, says there is "no evidence, no witnesses and no motive."



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