Local Couple Slain in Massachusetts

A Camarillo couple were fatally shot while vacationing in Massachusetts in what authorities described as a dispute over the sale of a family home.

The shooting occurred about 10 a.m. Oct. 16 outside the family home in a residential neighborhood in eastern Cambridge, said spokesman Frank Pasquarello of the Cambridge Police Department.

Mary Beranger, 73, was shot in the head and died that day. Her husband, Joseph Beranger, 67, died Friday from head and chest wounds, Pasquarello said.

The suspect in the slayings is Joseph Beranger’s half-brother, former Oxnard resident John Hinds, 56. Hinds, who has resided in Cambridge for several years, was living in the family home with his elderly mother and was reportedly upset by Joseph Beranger’s plan to sell the house.

Pasquarello said Beranger reportedly wanted to sell the house and use the proceeds to care for his mother, who had planned to move to a daughter’s home in another Massachusetts city.

On the day of the shooting, Hinds had lost a court bid to have Beranger barred from making changes or improvements to the family home.

Authorities said that after leaving a Cambridge courthouse, Hinds went home and allegedly shot his sister, Patty Hinds Mello, who survived. He then walked outside and allegedly fired on the Berangers, who were standing on a nearby street corner, authorities said.

The shooting, which occurred less than six blocks from the courthouse, was witnessed by a mail company delivery driver and another person. Hinds was arrested at the family home and a gun was recovered, Pasquarello said.

“It was pretty shocking to the whole neighborhood,” Pasquarello said.

Hinds was being held without bail in the Middlesex County (Mass.) Jail. He has already pleaded not guilty to charges that include murder, attempted murder and weapons violations. He will be arraigned on a second murder charge, in Joseph Beranger’s death, by Friday.