The Mount Washington Valley community is rallying to help the family of a young woman who was shot and killed last Friday at River Turn Apartments in Conway.
Alexis Leach, 23. leaves behind the 2-year-old son she shared with the 24-year-old man charged with manslaughter in connection with her shooting. Leach and MacLeod lived together and were reportedly an engaged couple.
Connor J. MacLeod, who was arrested last Friday, on Monday pleaded not guilty in Conway Circuit Court to manslaughter.
MacLeod was arrested shortly after midnight last Friday on a charge of manslaughter “for recklessly causing the death of Alexis M. Leach by shooting her with a firearm,” the Attorney General’s Office said.
According to a press release from the state Attorney General’s Office, the shooting occurred last Thursday at about 11:30 p.m.
On Monday, Circuit Court Judge Elizabeth Paine ordered MacLeod held without bail. His next hearing is May 7 at 1 p.m.
MacLeod pleaded not guilty and is being represented by Erin Ferry, a public defender.
A release from the state Attorney General’s Office said an autopsy was performed last Friday afternoon by Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Mitchell Weinberg, who determined that the cause of death was a gunshot wound to the neck and the manner of death was homicide.
State Attorney General John M. Formella, New Hampshire State Police Col. Mark Hall and Conway Police Chief Christopher Mattei issued a joint press release last Friday that said: “The Conway Police Department responded to an apartment located at 36 Council Road in Conway in response to a 911 call around 12 a.m. this morning for the report of an adult female resident who had been shot. She was taken to the hospital for treatment where she later died.”
Leach and MacLeod had a 2-year-old son, Bentley Daniel Wade MacLeod, who will be cared for by Leach’s father, Tommy Leach, who works at Hancock Lumber as a yard pro.
Alexis Leach graduated from Kennett High School in Conway in 2019 and was a stay-at-home mom, according to friends. MacLeod graduated from Eagle Academy, an alternative school at the high school, in 2017.
Conway Embroidery is putting on a fundraiser for Leach’s family online at 919262-10.myshopify.com.
The company’s Facebook page said: “As some of you may know, a young lady needlessly lost her life last night. Her father will be caring for her toddler son, as well as taking care of the financial burden. Somewhere in there he also needs to grieve. He is a family friend to our own Kellie. She has created this fundraiser in hopes of bringing awareness to domestic violence as well as trying to relieve some of the financial burden.”
Cards and donations checks can be sent to Tommy’s close friend, Cynthia Janvrin-Stacey, in care of Tommy Leach, P.O. Box 455. Glen, NH 03838.
Electronic funds can be sent to Tommy Leach through Zelle@ Tom_lch@yahoo.com
Family friend Jason Bagley created a GoFundMe account for the Leach family called “Please Help Tommy’s expenses with his daughters funeral.”
Per a Go Fund me update, a celebration of Alexis on 6/15 at the fryeburg fair grounds expo pavilion from 1 p.m.
Meanwhile, Daryn Buonnano, a neighbor of Leach and MacLeod at River Turn, said he heard a man yelling in the apartment building late last Thursday. Buonanno said he lives across the hall from Leach and MacLeod’s apartment. He told the Sun he had known the couple since January when he and his son Anthony moved in to the apartment building.
“They seemed like nice people,” said Buonanno. “They blessed my son and I with an air mattress when we first moved in here, because we had very minimal basic things.”
He said when Leach noticed he was making coffee in the community room, she gave him a coffee maker. “I literally make my coffee every morning with Alexis’ coffee maker,” Buonanno said, calling her “definitely a very caring person.”
He believes MacLeod was working as a carpenter.
On the night in question, Buonanno said he heard a man “incoherently” yelling. Buonanno said he was on the phone at the time, and at one point, he heard the words ‘help me.’ Had he known the words were coming from Leach and MacLoed’s apartment, he said he would have gone over sooner.
“I would have instantaneously went over there,” said Buonanno. “I’ve been trying not to beat myself up too hard for not entering sooner for whatever ifference that would have made.”
He said that at around 11:20 p.m., he heard a snapping noise that didn’t sounded to him like a gunshot, but he said he might have been distracted with his phone call.
When he heard a man’s voice yell out, ‘She’s dying,’ Buonanno said he got off the phone to go see what was happening. He looked through the peephole and saw a police officer arriving at the scene. He told the officer that MacLeod may be armed.
Within a few minutes, police brought MacLeod and a child out of the apartment. Buonanno said MacLeod was yelling. He said it took a long time for medical responders to get Leach on the stretcher and based on what he heard from them, there were “complications.” He said police did a good job securing the building over the next 21 hours.
MacLeod’s sister, Chelsea Rivard, had this to say on Facebook:
“On Thursday evening, my brother took Alexis’ life, leaving my nephew Bentley without parents. This senseless and horrific tragedy is something we are all struggling to wrap our heads around. Our hearts are broken, for Alexis, for Bentley, for Tommy, and for those affected. Tommy and Bentley need all of our love and support, now and in the future.”
The apartment building was part of Avesta Housing’s 40-unit River Turn Apartments rental housing project, which opened in January off Technology Lane in Conway.
The 40-unit, three-story, elevator-serviced rental apartment facility is the first of four eventual buildings planned to be built at the site, with the fourth building possibly to be built for senior housing, Avesta’s Todd Rothstein, director of construction services, told the Sun on Jan. 24.
More than 200 people applied to rent an apartment in the first building, according to Rothstein.
Avesta released the following statement on Monday:
“We are shocked and saddened by this tragedy, and our hearts go out to the victim’s family. We are assisting law enforcement with the investigation and have reached out to other residents to connect them with support services as needed.”
Buonanno said River Turn Woods is a nice place to live. “They’re hitting the lottery when they move into a place like this,” said Buonanno. “Everybody’s good here to each other … It’s normally very quiet.”
SAU 9 Superintendent Kevin Richard said he was the principal of Kennett Middle School when Leach was a student there.
“She was a sweet young lady with a great smile. She was quiet but always very friendly,” said Richard.
He added: “The schools are informed and prepared to respond to students and staff members who may have been connected to Alexis in any way.”
Starting Point, which provides free and confidential services to those affected by domestic violence, stalking. According to Starting Point, several young women lost their lives in domestic incidents over the past 17 months. Last December, William Kelly, 38, was charged with second-degree murder in Ossipee of the death of Christine Falzone, 33, which occurred in Ossipee, in December by means of “homicidal violence.“
Brandon Mitchell awaiting trial in the November 2022 shooting death of Esmae Doucette, 23, of Jackson.
Starting Point released a statement Monday, saying, “We are deeply saddened by the recent violence in our community. Our hearts as advocates and individual community members go out to and are with all of Alexis Leach’s family and friends.
“If you are struggling with any form of domestic or sexual violence, contact one of our advocates 24/7 at 1-800-336-3795. “If you are a community member who wishes to assist Starting Point in providing a response team to the community at a soon-to-be-announced date and time, please email community@startingpointnh.org
“‘Enough’ is a sentiment that we must all support. We will do so at this time in Alexis’ memory.”