Man Found Guilty in Connection with Machete Attack

MARLBOROUGH – Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Marlborough Chief of Police David Giorgi have confirmed that Abel Hernandez, 41, of Marlborough, has been found guilty of one count of threatening to commit a crime and one count of mayhem in connection with a 2023 attack on another man with a machete that nearly severed the victim’s hand from his arm.

On the evening of Sunday July 9, 2023, at Abel Hernandez’s Broad Street residence in Marlborough, he and a group of friends gathered to watch a soccer game. At some point an argument over the game broke out, and Hernandez brandished a machete and swung it at the victim, striking the victim’s forearm, while yelling “I’m going to kill you.” The victim suffered a significant injury, with his arm almost being completely severed.  After the assault Hernandez fled the scene but was apprehended by police at the intersection of Church Street and Hildreth Street in Marlborough later that night.

Over the course of the investigation and during his trial earlier this month, Hernandez repeatedly claimed that he was not present during the incident and that he had been drinking at a nearby restaurant and had later gone to a woman’s house. Investigators were ultimately able to disprove those claims,  learning that the restaurant he claimed to have been at during the time of the attack did not serve alcohol and was not open on Sundays, the day of the incident. Police also interviewed several witnesses that were able to identify Hernandez as the attacker.

A Middlesex Superior Court jury ultimately found Hernandez guilty after a four day trial.  Middlesex Superior Court Judge Catherine Ham sentenced Hernandez to four to five years in state prison for the mayhem charge, and 3 years of probation, during which he must  stay  away and not contact the victim and witnesses  and not possess any dangerous weapons for the threats charge.

This investigation was conducted by the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office and the Marlborough Police Department. The Assistant District Attorney was Robert Royce. The Victim Witness Advocate was Lesia Schymonowytsch.