Man charged with hammer attack at beach held without bail

CHELSEA, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts man charged with shouting racial slurs and swinging a hammer at a group of black and Latino men at a beach has been held without bail pending a hearing to determine whether he is dangerous.


State police arrested 24-year-old Gianpaolo Cerretani at Revere Beach on Sunday.

Authorities allege Cerretani took a football from a child. The group took the football back and returned it to the child. They say Cerretani then started swinging the hammer while shouting slurs, causing minor injuries to an 18-year-old man.

A woman who described herself as Cerretani's girlfriend and a man who said he was his roommate said the football belonged to Cerretani and he's the victim because he was "jumped."

His attorney didn't immediately return a call for comment.

Cerretani is due back in court Thursday.