WILLIMANTIC, Conn. — A senior citizen described by his family as someone with a big heart and an even bigger friend base was found slain inside a Willimantic housing unit. Nearly seven years later, efforts to solve his continue to case grow cold. Now, the family says it has new hope in the form of a state-incentivized $50 thousand reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.
Police are calling on neighbors of the late William Alvarado, 73, to help solve his case after he was found inside the John Ashton Tower, a city housing authority unit on Valley Street.
“He was attacked in his own home where he should’ve felt the safest,” his niece Melissa Alvarado Lee said Monday inside the Willimantic Police Department where the Windham State’s Attorney announced Governor Ned Lamont’s approval of the state-funded reward.
“Super trusting, which is probably not good because look at where it got him.”
Willimantic Police can go years without a single homicide case.
“This is a rare event for Willimantic,” said Police Chief Paul Hussey.
That changed on September 7th, 2016 when Alvarado was found dead inside his home—his death later ruled a homicide by the medical examiner’s office. But police released little information on his death at the time and say they’ve been running into closed doors since.
Michael Sheldon of the State’s Attorney’s Cold Case Unit said, “We do believe that William knew his killer well. We’re hoping that tips could lead the way to figuring out the pieces of the puzzle to solving this case.”
For nearly seven years the Alvarado family has carried on without answers.
“The manner that they took him, it’s devastating. And there is someone out there—a killer, loose," his sister-in-law Carmen Everett said.
Windham State’s Attorney Anne Mahoney pushed the case to Major Crimes and now to a Cold Case Unit.
“Oftentimes people don’t know that the information that they have is significant because they can’t see the entire picture,” Mahoney said.
Alvarado Lee says the reward gives the family renewed hope in a resolution.
“Unfortunately, it’s for money but whatever it is, we’ll take it. We just want it solved.”
If you know anything about what happened to William Alvarado, you are urged to call the Cold Case Unit at 866-623-8058. Tips can remain anonymous.
Samaia Hernandez is a reporter for FOX61 News. She can be reached at shernandez@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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