Stabbing Suspect Accused Of Attempted Concord Cop Assault At Camp

CONCORD, NH — A local man was arrested on Wednesday on a myriad of charges after police were again called to a homeless camp on the southeast side of the city for reports of another fight.

Around 2 p.m., Concord police were called to Black Hill Road for a report of a fight at a homeless camp at the former Concord Drive-In site. During the process of settling the fight, officers came in contact with Curtis James Ayer, 32, of Pembroke Road in Concord, who was one of two suspects connected to the stabbing at the camp on Tuesday that sent one man to Concord Hospital with a back injury.

Ayer, according to Deputy Chief John Thomas of the Concord Police Department, “attempted to assault a Concord police officer” while police were speaking with him and he was arrested. While trying to handcuff him, officers accused Ayer of resisting.

Ayer was formally charged with attempted simple assault on a police officer and resisting arrest or detention.

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Due to his demeanor, the department made the decision to take him straight to the Merrimack County Jail.

Detectives continued to work the stabbing case and later in the day, issued an arrest warrant for Ayer on second-degree assault and reckless conduct, both felony charges, as well as criminal mischief.

Investigating The Stabbing Case

According to an affidavit, the victim in the attack told police he heard a commotion outside of his tent and went outside to see what was going on at around 7 p.m. on Tuesday.

The victim claimed two people, Ayer and another man known to police due to priors, were ripping through and destroying another man’s tent. Someone, the victim said, yelled, “You made me do this!” and several people attempted to stop Ayer from cutting up the man's tent, the report stated. Ayer, the victim said, had “a blank stare on his face” during the incident. A woman then grabbed a rake and attempted to get Ayer to stop, a report stated. Ayer, the victim said, kept saying, “Hit me, hit me,” at the woman.

Later, the victim said he turned away from the incident, he was hit from behind, and shoved to the ground. The victim began to roll and he accused Ayer of stabbing him, claiming that Ayer said, “Oh s---, you got stabbed,” according to an affidavit.

The victim said he considered Ayer a friend. He was treated at the emergency room at Concord Hospital with a punctured lung.

Detectives questioned a number of witnesses and issued a crimeline request for people to come forward to help solve the case.

One detective also attempted to speak Ayer around 8 a.m. on Wednesday on South Main Street but he declined, according to the report.

At 2 p.m., on Wednesday police were called to the camp for another “large fight.”

According to a witness, Ayer was walking down a path on the property yelling, “You’re a snitch, you're a snitch” the entire time, the affidavit said. A fight then ensued and police were called.

An officer accused Ayer of being “extremely intoxicated to the point where he fell face-first onto the ground and was incoherent,” an affidavit stated.

During more witness interviews, detectives learned the original fight dated back to an incident 18 months ago involving Ayer, the second man, and the homeless camper whose tent was being destroyed. They all appeared intoxicated, a witness stated. A witness also claimed to hear Ayer admit he “straight-up stabbed (the victim).”

Officers then went to speak to Ayer again, leading to the accusation of the attempted assault against the officer and resisting arrest charge.

About six hours later, officers and detectives had gathered enough evidence against Ayer to issue a warrant for his arrest. He was formally charged at the county jail around 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

Ayer is due in Merrimack County Superior Court for arraignment on Thursday.

Ayer’s Priors

Ayer has an active second-degree assault charge in superior court, accused of assaulting another homeless person with a hatchet over a panhandling spot in January on Fort Eddy Road. He has a pretrial hearing in that case scheduled for Nov. 22.

Back in 2007, Ayer was accused of burglary in Goffstown and pleaded down to a criminal trespass charge. He was found to be in violation of probation or parole in November 2008 and August 2014.

According to posts on Patch, during the past few years, he has been arrested on criminal threatening, simple assault, disorderly conduct, trespass, breach of bail, and resisting charges as well as various warrants for crimes in Manchester and other New Hampshire locations.

Thomas said anyone with information about the case was being asked to contact police at 603-225-8600 or call the Concord Regional Crimeline at 603-226-3100.

Editor's note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Concord Police Department and does not indicate a conviction. This link explains the removal request process for New Hampshire Patch police reports.

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