Over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, Chelsea was shaken by two homicides that left authorities and residents deeply troubled. Random acts of violence claimed two lives in the span of just a few days. The first victim was Frederick Allen, 56, a resident of 170 Bellingham Street. Police discovered him dead in his apartment with a belt around his neck; he had been strangled. According to police sources and findings from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, his death was ruled a homicide. The second victim, 30-year-old Carlos Ramirez, was fatally stabbed following a confrontation outside 759 Broadway. Police investigators believe the incident stemmed from a dispute over drugs between Ramirez and 21-year-old Dennis Bowen. During the altercation, Bowen allegedly drew a knife and plunged it into Ramirez’s heart, as confirmed by police accounts and a subsequent autopsy performed by the Chief Medical Examiner. Authorities suspect Allen’s death may have involved domestic violence, though his assailant remains unidentified and the investigation continues. On November 26, Bowen turned himself in to police. He appeared before Judge Benjamin Barnes in Chelsea District Court and was arraigned on one count of murder. The court held him without bail after he entered a not guilty plea. According to police, Bowen’s criminal history is relatively minor. Ramirez, by contrast, had an extensive record with more than a half dozen pending court cases at the time of his death. “His rap sheet is almost seven feet long,” noted a source with knowledge of the case. While many circumstances surrounding Allen’s strangulation remain unclear, prosecutors have pieced together the events involving Bowen and Ramirez. Witnesses reported hearing two men arguing and cursing in a hallway at 759 Broadway, where Bowen lives. The confrontation escalated and moved outside onto the sidewalk in front of the building. Witnesses observed the two men fighting, and an unidentified third party attempted to intervene. According to witness accounts and prosecutors from the District Attorney’s office, Bowen was positioned over a fallen Ramirez, striking him repeatedly. After Ramirez stood up, Bowen rushed at him with a knife, inflicting two stab wounds to the chest that damaged his heart and lung. Bowen then ran from the scene. Attorney John Cardiff is representing Bowen.
