Melendez was taken into custody at police headquarters, where he had been brought in for questioning.
SPRINGFIELD - Springfield police on Thuesday afternoon arrested a second suspect in this weekend's shooting death of 16-year-old Chicopee teen Kevin Gomez, said Sgt. John M. Delaney, aide for Commissioner William J. Fitchet.
Members of the department's homicide unit charged Mark Melendez, 19 of 264 Fountain St., Springfield in connection with the homicide. He is the second person arrested in the case.
ON Tuesday, 17-year-old Gregory Falero of 157 Jardine St., Springfield.
Melendez was taken into custody at police headquarters, where he had been brought in for questioning, Delaney said.
He was charged with murder, possession of a firearm without a license, possession of ammunition without a license and discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling.
He is scheduled to be arraigned Friday in Springfield District Court.
Gomez was shot early Sunday morning in front of 729 Belmont Ave. as he was attending a private birthday party nearby.
Falero pleaded innocent Wednesday in District Court and was ordered held without right to bail by Judge Elizabeth Sanabria-Vega. Daniel M. Kelly was appointed to represent Falero, who was arraigned with the aid of a Spanish interpreter.
Springfield police did not release a mugshot of Melendez due to what Delaney called "future identification purposes."
Hampden District Attorney Mark Mastroiann since taking office in January has opposed releasing photographs of murder suspects, saying the resulting publicity during the investigation could hamper the ability of detectives to obtain identifcations that could be used in the prosecution.
At Wednesday's arraignment, Mastroianni filed a motion in District Court to keep cameras out of the courtroom. The motion was accepted by the judge.
He asked that the prohibition of cameras end March 23, when Falero will be brought back into court for a bail hearing.