HOPKINTON, MA — A 70-year-old Hopkinton man is facing attempted murder and other charges after police said a dispute over access to Lake Maspenock turned violent Wednesday evening.
Steven Dana, 70, was arrested after Hopkinton police responded shortly before 7 p.m. Wednesday to a report of a fight in progress at Sandy Beach on Lakeshore Drive, police said. Dana was charged with attempt to murder, strangulation or suffocation and assault and battery on a disabled person.
Police said the altercation involved Dana and a 21-year-old man over the younger man’s use of Lake Maspenock, which straddles Hopkinton and Milford. The only boat ramp to the lake is on Lakeshore Drive, and Hopkinton limits its use to Hopkinton residents from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend.
Officers reviewed video footage that showed Dana slap the 21-year-old man across the face before the two ended up struggling in the water, police said. The footage showed Dana forcefully holding the man under the water before other people nearby pulled Dana off him, according to police.
Police said they were also told the 21-year-old had been in an accident a few months earlier that caused severe injuries and that he was walking on crutches.
Dana was arrested without incident at his home and taken to the Hopkinton Police Department, police said. He was held without bail pending arraignment Thursday in Framingham District Court.
Both Dana and the 21-year-old declined to be taken to a hospital for medical treatment, police said.
Police said they believe Dana approached the man because he was not a Hopkinton resident and confronted him about using the lake.
“This is an incident of senseless violence that could have had tragic results, and we treat matters like this with the utmost seriousness,” Hopkinton Deputy Police Chief Scott van Raalten said in a statement. “The Hopkinton Police Department asks that residents contact the proper authorities to investigate incidents that involve the enforcement of the town's bylaws rather than taking matters into their own hands.”
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