Trials
Craig Jones pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the shooting death of Ricky Arroyo outside a Holyoke Boys and Girls Club.
Western Mass News reported that Craig Jones pleaded not guilty Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, in the shooting death of Ricky Arroyo and is being held without bail. The station said the shooting happened Sunday outside the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Holyoke during a high school girls basketball fall league.
By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer ·
A not-guilty plea is the defendant's answer to the charges. It is not a finding. Western Mass News reported Jones is charged with first-degree murder and three firearm counts. He is due back Nov. 13. The Hampden District Attorney's office is investigating.
Western Mass News reported that Holyoke police were called to Nick Cosmos Way around 1 p.m. Sunday for a report of a man down, and that the incident was a shooting. An adult man was taken to a hospital and died. On Tuesday the station identified the man who died as Ricky Arroyo and the defendant as Craig Jones. Jones is charged with first-degree murder, carrying a gun without a license, carrying a loaded gun without a license, and discharging a gun within 500 feet of a building. He pleaded not guilty to all of those counts and is being held without bail.
The station reported that witnesses said the shooting happened in front of children during a Western Massachusetts high school girls basketball fall league, that someone yelled that there was an active shooter, and that children hid under the bleachers. The Boys and Girls Club said none of its members, participants, staff, coaches, or officials were injured. Club President and CEO Eileen Cavanaugh said the gunfire followed an altercation between two adult spectators outside the building. Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia said the investigation is ongoing and that, based on the information available, there is no ongoing threat to the public.
Jones is due back in court Nov. 13. A plea and a bail order are custody and process. They are not a verdict. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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