Louisiana Man Arraigned in Connection with July Hit and Run

A Louisiana man has been arraigned in connection with a dead body found in the roadway of I-95/Rte. 128 near Burlington on July 26, Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan announced Friday.

Nicandro Velasquez, 50, of Haughton, Louisiana, was arraigned August 21 in Woburn District Court on charges of leaving the scene of a death and unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle.

Velasquez was arraigned before Judge Cesar Archilla who ordered the defendant held on $4,000 cash bail and the condition that he surrender his passport and that he not drive a motor vehicle.

The defendant will be back in court on Sept. 18 for a probable cause hearing.

“This investigation began with help from other drivers who noticed the truck that night and responded with information. That led Massachusetts State Police to identify the vehicle and interview the truck’s alleged driver and other passengers,” District Attorney Ryan said.

The body of 54-year-old Cliserio Cordova Ferral, also of Louisiana, was seen lying in the highway near the Winn Street exit of the highway’s northbound lanes on July 26.

Motorists reported the body to police and an investigation began.

Massachusetts State Police later located a truck and trailer in Orland, Maine matching one seen near Burlington that night. Authorities allege Ferral and Velasquez had been traveling to Maine for work and Ferral fell out of the truck onto the roadway.

Authorities allege that Velasquez knew Ferral had been injured, but instead of seeking aid, Velasquez then allegedly continued driving to the destination in Maine.