Kanchanben Patel.
A Norwood man involved in a confrontation over an unpaid bill struck two Wrentham motel employees with his pickup truck, and then drove three miles with one of them, Kanchanben Patel, lodged under his vehicle, prosecutors said in court Nov. 19.
The woman, 58-year-old Kanchanben Patel, was found dead in the parking lot of a U.S. Route 1 restaurant in Foxborough at about 10 p.m. Nov. 18, just south of the Patriot Place shopping center and Gillette Stadium.
Moses Acloque, 22, pleaded not guilty Nov. 19 in Wrentham District Court to charges including leaving the scene of a fatal accident. He posted $3000 bail, was ordered to wear a GPS monitoring device, to stay away from the motel and any witnesses in the case.
His defense attorney told a different story in court. Acloque was not staying illegally at the Arbor Inn, but was visiting friends at the motel to watch the Patriots game on the night of Nov. 18. He fled in fear when hotel employees confronted him, attorney Rudy Miller said.
Acloque had no idea that he was dragging a body, Miller said. The Indian American woman and her husband were both hit by Acloque, prosecutors said, but her husband only sustained minor injuries. Patel was remembered by motel management as a kind and polite woman who had recently become an American citizen.
Acloque is the son of a Boston police officer and former star football player at Norwood High School who briefly played in college, Miller said. He has never been in any legal trouble, the lawyer said. He is due back in court Dec. 19.