Local man has bail set in Fall River Superior Court after juvenile shot him with unsecured firearm

A local man was in Fall River Superior Court Tuesday after an investigation into a non-fatal shooting that occurred in April.

According to police, just before 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 5th, New Bedford police officers were notified that a male victim with a gunshot wound had arrived at Saint Luke’s Hospital. The victim was later identified as 40-year-old Saturnino Martell.

Through the course of the investigation, detectives learned that Martell was inside his residence on South Second Street when a juvenile accessed an unsecured firearm and discharged it, striking Martell. The incident is believed to have been accidental.

Martell left the residence prior to emergency personnel arriving and was later treated at the hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.

During the investigation, Martell made statements indicating he had disposed of the firearm used in the shooting.

Detectives obtained and executed a search warrant at Martell’s residence. During the search, detectives recovered a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun, 65 shotgun shells, 74 rounds of 9mm ammunition, 163 rounds of .40 caliber ammunition, 13 rounds of .380 caliber ammunition, and approximately 10.8 grams of cocaine.

Martell does not possess a valid License to Carry in Massachusetts.

As a result, he was placed under arrest and charged with possession with intent to distribute a Class B drug, four counts of possession of ammunition without an FID card, unlawful possession of a rifle/shotgun, reckless endangerment of a child under 18, carrying a loaded firearm without a license, and withholding evidence from a criminal proceeding.

Court records show that in Fall River Superior Court, Martell was indicted in June.

On Tuesday morning, Martell pled not guilty and had bail set at $25,000 surety/$2,500 cash with a pretrial conference scheduled for September 3rd.