A man suspected of killing his wife and a transgender activist in Dorchester appeared in court Monday on murder charges.
A Dorchester man charged with murder in connection with the stabbing deaths of two women at a home in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood was ordered held without bail Monday in a court hearing in Boston.
Marcus Chavis, 35, was arrested Sunday afternoon shortly after police discovered two women -- one of whom was his wife -- had been stabbed inside of a home on Taft Street in Dorchester.
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When police officers arrived at the scene, Chavis came to onto the porch covered in blood and on the phone with relatives making arrangements for his children -- aged 7 and 8 years old -- who were in the house at the time of the incident, prosecutors said.
The children were not injured in the incident, police said. They were brought to a hospital for an evaluation.
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"These children are going to be impacted for the rest of their lives," Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins told reporters.
Inside the home, police found Chavis' wife, Fatima Yasin, 28, and 42-year-old Jahaira DeAlto suffering from several stab wounds, prosecutors said. They initially gave the different ages for Yasin and Chavis.
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One of the women died on the scene, while the other suffered serious injuries and later died at a local hospital, Boston police said.
A small dog was stabbed in the side during the incident but is expected to survive following treatment.
Prosecutors said DeAlto was allowing the family to stay at her home.
DeAlto's former roommates said she was a transgender activist who was always willing to help others.
"She just cared so much about so many people, and was so motherly to so many people," Alice Guss said.
According to prosecutors, Chavis called 911 and said he had stabbed his wife. But he allegedly changed his story and told investigators he woke up and found her bleeding while he was holding a knife.
Chavis has said he suffers from PTSD and paranoid schizophrenia, according to prosecutors, who say they have yet to determine a motive for the stabbing.
Officers responded to the home shortly after 1 p.m. on Sunday.
"I saw a bunch of cop cars pull up and two little kids got taken out of the house with a couple EMTs and a couple police officers," neighbor Alex Moschetto said.
Neighbors were shocked to discover the events that took place.
“I believe this is out of the ordinary for everyone around here right now," another neighbor Danny O'Donoghue said.
Neighbor Carlos Aceituno says he saw one of the women just hours before the incident - the details of which are still unclear.
“I say, ‘Hi,’ and when I have my car down the street, and always I say, ‘Hi, my sweetheart,’" Aceituno said. “It’s very, very hard. When the guy told me — I’m in shock right now."
