Police say they found 30-year-old Aramis Segura hiding under her bed following a fatal New Year’s Eve crash in Warwick that claimed the life of an East Greenwich teen. The defendant was allegedly out partying in Cranston, when her boyfriend allegedly crashed his car. She was accused of stopping at the crash scene on her way home. And now, a jury has found her guilty of numerous charges.
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced Friday that a Charlestown woman has been found guilty in Kent County Superior Court for her role in the death of 17-year-old Olivia Passaretti in 2022.
On Aug. 2, following a four-day trial before Superior Court Justice Luis M. Matos, a jury found Alicia Peckham, 27, of Charlestown, “guilty of one count of aiding and abetting a criminal, one count of aiding and abetting the driver who failed to stop after knowingly being involved in a crash that resulted in death, one count of knowingly concealing the commission of a felony, and one count of obstructing an officer in the execution of duty,” according to a press release from the Attorney General’s office.
Peckham was released on bail pending her sentencing hearing to be held at a later date, according to the AG’s office.
“In June, our Office helped pass important and long overdue legislation concerning dangerous driving, which oftentimes leads to horrific, entirely avoidable tragedies like this one,” said Attorney General Neronha. “This defendant aided and abetted an alleged criminal, standing in the way of justice for Olivia, whose life was tragically ripped away from her that evening, leaving her loved ones to pick up the pieces. I’m grateful to the jury for delivering justice in this case and thankful to the Rhode Island State Police for their exceptional work here.”
During the trial, the prosecution “proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant aided and abetted her boyfriend, Aramis Segura, after he left the scene of a car crash that killed Olivia Passaretti during the early morning hours of New Years Day 2022. She was 17 years old.”
“At approximately 12:30 a.m. on Jan. 1, 2022, Aramis Segura was allegedly driving his 2010 Mercedes Benz C300 sedan at a high rate of speed on I-95 South when he changed lanes and collided with a 2008 Nissan Altima,” according to prosecutors. “In the immediate aftermath of the crash, Segura is alleged to have fled the scene, leaving his car behind. The victim’s vehicle rolled into the west shoulder of the highway and landed on its roof after hitting a large tree. Warwick rescue personnel pronounced the victim as deceased at the scene. Mr. Segura is currently awaiting trial on charges resulting from this incident. He is presumed innocent unless and until he is convicted by a jury or pleads guilty to the charges.”
The victim’s family has been vocal about seeking justice for Passaretti. More than two years ago, they called for Peckham’s arrest.
“Separately, the defendant was out celebrating New Year’s Eve at Applebee’s in Garden City in Cranston,” according to the AG’s office. “After leaving the restaurant, the defendant returned to Providence to retrieve her vehicle before traveling south on I-95 towards her home in Charlestown. While driving, she came upon the aforementioned crash and stopped to speak with a Rhode Island State Police trooper, at which time she denied recognizing the vehicle allegedly operated by Segura.”
“At 2:31 a.m., Mr. Segura called the defendant and asked her to pick him up in East Greenwich,” argued the prosecution. “A short time later, the defendant picked him up in her vehicle and drove him to their home in Charlestown. Several hours later, the State Police arrived at their Charlestown home looking for Mr. Segura, but the defendant denied knowing his whereabouts. Shortly thereafter, State troopers located Mr. Segura inside the home and arrested him.”
According to the AG’s office, the case against Peckham’s codefendant, Aramis Segura, remains pending. A pre-trial conference is scheduled for Aug. 23.
Assistant Attorney General John Corrigan led the prosecution. RISP Detective Lt. Heather Palumbo, Lt. Sean McGehearty and Lt. Mark McGehearty, and Capt. Jeffrey L’Heureux led the investigation of the case.
Olivia’s mother, Janine Passaretti-Molloy, provided a statement after the indictments were made public in June of 2022.
“Today is a day that my family and everyone that loves my Olivia has been waiting for,” she wrote. “Today is the beginning of bringing justice to the monster that killed her, and his girlfriend who did everything he did except physically drive the car that violently took my child from this world!”
Passaretti-Molloy addressed the specific charges filed against Segura.
“We were pushing for second-degree murder charges, which aren’t the charges that came in, however it doesn’t mean that we don’t believe that isn't what he is,” she wrote. “We and many others believe that he murdered my child when he decided to drive at 100 mph that night posting on social media prior to doing so. It showed his mindset. He did not care who was on the road and he certainly didn’t care when he hit my innocent 17-year-old child’s car that was halfway home doing 64 mph and violently went from 64 mph to 85 mph in a split second after he hit her, sending her spinning into a tree then flipping over to her death! He didn’t go check on her. He fled the scene.”
The family was pleased to hear that Peckham now faces serious criminal charges as well.
“His girlfriend helped ... through every step,” Passaretti-Molloy wrote in 2022.
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