TAUNTON, Mass. — A woman accused of driving two people to a deadly mass shooting at a large birthday party in Taunton was ordered held without bail Thursday after prosecutors detailed evidence they say links her to the attack that left one person dead and seven others wounded.
Sienna Barboza, 25, of New Bedford, was arraigned in Taunton District Court on one count of murder and eight counts of armed assault with intent to murder.
Taunton police officers responded to a home at 261 Weir Street just after 12:30 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 6, and found multiple people suffering from gunshot wounds. Authorities said a birthday party with approximately 50 to 60 people was taking place when gunfire erupted.
Investigators said eight people were shot. Two victims were critically wounded, while six victims suffered injuries that were not considered life-threatening.
Zirovick Depina, 25, of Brockton, was shot in the abdomen, flown to Tufts Medical Center in Boston, and died during surgery hours later.
A 23-year-old man, whose name hasn’t been released, was also shot in the abdomen and paralyzed from the waist down, prosecutors said Thursday.
Authorities said the home where the shooting occurred abuts railroad tracks, with a fence, privacy screen, and bushes separating the tracks from the backyard gathering.
Massachusetts State Police and Taunton detectives recovered 14 spent 9mm shell casings from the railroad tracks behind the home, according to prosecutors.
“From the position of where the shots were fired, the shooter would not have been able to see into the backyard,” a prosecutor told the court. “All 14 shots were fired indiscriminately into the crowd of people.”
Investigators used surveillance video to identify a black SUV seen about a block from the shooting scene. Prosecutors said the footage showed two individuals walking to and from the area where the shots were fired.
Authorities later determined the vehicle, a 2017 Mercedes-Benz SUV, was registered to Barboza.
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Prosecutors said Barboza initially told investigators she was at her New Bedford apartment with her children all night when the shooting occurred. However, authorities said cellphone data placed her in the area when the gunfire erupted.
According to prosecutors, cellphone evidence showed searches for directions to the Weir Street address before the shooting. Surveillance video allegedly showed Barboza’s vehicle driving past the scene and around the block before stopping near the railroad tracks. Two people then exited the vehicle, prosecutors said.
After the shooting, the pair returned to the SUV, and Barboza drove them back to New Bedford, according to prosecutors. Surveillance video allegedly showed all three entering her apartment. Investigators also said she was seen disposing of trash bags the following day.
The investigation remains ongoing, and authorities said they are still working to identify the other two individuals believed to be involved.
A court-appointed defense attorney argued Barboza has no prior criminal record, deep ties to the New Bedford community, and is the mother of two children under 5. Her attorney also described the allegations as completely out of character and argued there is no evidence she ever left the vehicle or knew a shooting was going to occur.
“She definitely didn’t have a weapon. I don’t think there’s any indication she ever had a weapon at all,” Barboza’s attorney said outside court.
Barboza is scheduled to return to court on Oct. 7 for a probable cause hearing.
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