PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Providence police have identified the victim of a deadly shooting over the weekend, along with the man accused of killing him.
Ivan Encarnacion, 25, of Providence, was shot and killed early Sunday morning in the basement of a home on Burnside Street in South Providence, according to police officials.
The suspect, 26-year-old Antonio Reyson Leonor Uffre of Woonsocket, is facing several charges including murder and possession of a ghost gun. He was arraigned Monday and ordered held without bail.
Encarnacion’s family was in the courtroom Monday. They said he got along with everyone and never looked for trouble, which made his death all the more shocking.
“He was just the life of the family. Life of the party,” said his cousin, Dimell Encarnacion. “He was just … if you needed him for something, he was there.”
Major David Lapatin said police believe the shooting stemmed from an argument at the home, which was being used as an unsanctioned after-hours bar.
“Witnesses had pointed out to the possible shooter. Patrol officers apprehended him very quickly,” he said. “Detectives then arrived at the scene, sorted everything out, and he was charged with the murder of the victim.”
Those types of establishments, according to Lapatin, open up once nightclubs close and typically host large crowds, charge an entrance fee and sell liquor.
Chief Oscar Perez said police are working with the attorney general’s office and city solicitor’s office to crack down on these establishments, calling them a “nuisance that we have in the city.” He said there have been past incidents at the home where the shooting took place.
Perez noted, however, that these cases are often difficult to investigate.
“It takes work … because the last thing we want to do is violate someone’s home just because they’re having a mere party,” he said.
“We’ve got to make sure we have enough evidence to move forward with them,” Perez added. “If it’s one incident, that’s one thing, but when we can prove that it’s actually a nuisance in the neighborhood, and we have to be able to prove that.”
Watch: Providence police news conference (story continues below)
Perez and Lapatin also gave an update on a shooting Saturday night on North Main Street.
Lapatin said the victim is in stable condition and police have “some good leads” in their search for a suspect. They believe that shooting also resulted from an argument.
Both shootings remain under investigation.
