Brookline Teens Accused of Shaking Down High School Student

Editor's note: The following article was amended after charges against one of the accused, Vincent Cirincione, were dismissed in court.

Several teenagers from Brookline and Roslindale were arrested Saturday after they allegedly attacked a high school student who owed one of them money.

Police arrested five suspects—Maria Giannarikas, 18, of Roslindale, and Leanna Lande, 21, Vincent Cirincione, 18, Jordan Dowling, 18, and a 16-year-old, all of Brookline—around 8 p.m. on Sept. 4 and initially charged each with assault and battery to collect a loan, assault with a dangerous weapon and conspiracy to commit a felony, among other crimes.

Cirincione was only arraigned on one charge—accessory after the fact—and it was dismissed on Dec. 16, according to court documents. Brookline Patch is not identifying the 16-year-old because of his age.

According to a police report, officers were called to Walnut Street on Saturday after a witness reported seeing two men attack a third man and take off in a white vehicle. When police located the victim, he reportedly told officers that someone he knew from Brookline High—later identified as the youngest suspect—had followed him down Walnut Street while swinging a skateboard at him threateningly, and eventually punched him in the face before fleeing in a white car. Officers reported that the victim's lip was cut and his face was red.

Police stopped a vehicle matching the victim's description on Pearl Street a short time later and found the five suspects inside. While searching the vehicle, which was registered to Lande, officers reportedly found a BB gun and two plastic bags of a substance believed to be marijuana. Lande and Dowling were additionally charged with possession of a Class D substance with intent to distribute.

All five suspects were arrested under the state's joint venture statute, which allows prosecutors to charge all of those involved in criminal activity with the same crimes.