Police: 22-year-old charged in fatal Providence triple shooting last summer. What to know.

Mark Reynolds, Providence Journal
Updated ·2 min read

PROVIDENCE – A 22-year-old Pawtucket man was arraigned Thursday after he was accused of participating in a drive-by shooting that killed one man, severely injured two others and brought a spray of bullets to an area of the Chad Brown housing complex on a summer evening last year.

Nathan Rodrigues faced a first-degree murder charge and nine other criminal counts in the death of 33-year-old Jhensen Baldayac − whose family members describe as a devoted father who delivered Amazon packages and was visiting his brother the night of the shooting.

Rodrigues is also accused of shooting and severely injuring 35-year-old Jack Baldayac and 28-year-old Jean Carlos Rodriguez on the night of Aug. 3, 2023.

Nathan Rodrigues, 22, of Pawtucket, faces a charge of first-degree murder and nine other criminal counts in the shooting death of Jhensen Baldayac.
Nathan Rodrigues, 22, of Pawtucket, faces a charge of first-degree murder and nine other criminal counts in the shooting death of Jhensen Baldayac.

Providence police announced Rodrigues' arrest Thursday morning and the defendant made an appearance before Judge Stephen M. Isherwood in District Court, Providence.

What happened the night of the shooting

The shooting happened on June Street, on the edge of the Chad Brown housing complex.

It left bullet casings in the street, and hours later police found a vehicle on Goddard Street. The vehicle, which police said was involved in the shooting, was pocked with bullets.

Providence police investigators process a crime scene on June Street at the Chad Brown housing complex on Aug. 3, 2023, after three young men were shot.
Providence police investigators process a crime scene on June Street at the Chad Brown housing complex on Aug. 3, 2023, after three young men were shot.

Jhensen Baldayac's cousin Angelica Jasso, 34, of Providence, said Thursday that she had hoped that media coverage of the arrest would shed greater light on the violence and lead to more awareness of her slain cousin.

Jasso said she had driven to the scene soon after the shooting and learned that Jhensen Baldayac had been outside in the company of children when the shooting had taken place.

Baldayac, of Cranston, had gone to visit family members at the housing complex, Jasso said.

"He was literally at the wrong place at the wrong time," she said.

Jhensen Baldayac, 33, of Cranston, was killed last summer in a drive-by shooting at the Chad Brown housing complex.
Jhensen Baldayac, 33, of Cranston, was killed last summer in a drive-by shooting at the Chad Brown housing complex.

Jhensen Baldayac had spent time in prison but had turned a page after his time at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston.

He delivered Amazon packages and studied at the Community College of Rhode Island, Jasso said, adding that he took business management and marketing classes.

He had become a devout Muslim in prison and prayed regularly at a local mosque, she said.

Angelica Jasso, 34, of Providence, and Jessica Jasso, 31, of Providence, say that their cousin Jhensen Baldayac, a former convict, had turned a page, was focused on being a father and had nothing to do with a Pawtucket man now charged with his murder.
Angelica Jasso, 34, of Providence, and Jessica Jasso, 31, of Providence, say that their cousin Jhensen Baldayac, a former convict, had turned a page, was focused on being a father and had nothing to do with a Pawtucket man now charged with his murder.

The young father had four children, ages 13, 11, 2 and 1. The younger ones, especially, kept him busy, she said.

"There's a lot of lives, a lot of families, that are hurt right now," she said.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Police charge Nathan Rodrigues in fatal 2023 Providence shooting