Gunshots On West Hollis Street Lead To Arrest Weeks Later

NASHUA, NH — A man from Nashua faces a single felony count of reckless conduct after a shooting outside a bar on West Hollis Street in late February.

Around 2 a.m. on Feb. 27, an officer on patrol heard what they thought was around six gunshots on West Hollis Street. As the officer approached the area near the Opus Lounge, they saw “a large group of people” in the rear parking lot involved in what appeared to be an altercation.

The officer saw a man being held back by a woman.

The officer spoke to witnesses who stated a man in a red hat had fired several rounds into the air and then left the area in a black vehicle. The man, they said, was involved in an altercation with a woman earlier. A second man attempted to intervene to protect his girlfriend, the report said.

The officer went over to another area of the lot where the witnesses said the shooting took place and found several spent shell casings.

Other officers and a detective arrived and found out there was video footage on a cellphone of the incident.

The detective eyed the video, about two and half minutes long. In the middle of it, the picture went black. But audio could be heard of people yelling at each other.

“I don’t give a f--- about that gun,” the detective heard and then, six or seven gunshots.

A number of men were throwing a version of the n-word around while another man called the shooter “fake is f---.” A third man could be heard yelling, “Flex, get in the whip...”

More witnesses were spoken to including a woman who said she knew “Flex” about a week and met him on Snapchat. She gave the Snapchat account name to the detective. She said all involved were arguing and then “Flex” and another man began pushing each other around. “Flex” then began shooting his gun into the air, the affidavit said.

The suspect was described as a Hispanic man in his 20s, the report said.

The next day, around 1 p.m., another detective realized the account the woman gave to the first detective belonged to Felix Melo, 31, of C Street in Nashua. One of Melo’s friends, according to the detective, was also communicating with him on Snapchat, confirming it was his account.

The detective completed an arrest warrant on March 3 and Melo was arrested on March 15.

A detective attempted to conduct a post-arrest interview with Melo but, “he refused to leave his holding cell in order to partake.”

Melo was arraigned on March 16. He is due back in Hillsborough County Superior Court South on a dispositional conference on May 19.

According to superior court records, Melo has a few priors. He was convicted on a simple assault charge in 2009 as part of a plea deal that led to three robbery charges being dismissed or nolle prossed. Melo was also arrested on a stolen handgun charge out of Manchester in May 2018, a charge that was later dismissed. He pleaded guilty to an obstruct government administration charge in May 2021 after an incident in Nashua in May 2020. In May 2021, Melo was also accused of drug dealing in Nashua. Three active felony charges are working their way through superior court, with jury selection expected to begin on May 2.

Editor's note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Nashua 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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