PORTSMOUTH — Five men involved in the shooting of a 17-year-old Newport boy Sunday night were arraigned Monday, a day after police say a drug deal among them went bad. The men — a father and son on one side, and four acquaintances on the other — face a myriad of charges, and police are still working to sort out exactly what happened. But in the end, Portsmouth Deputy Chief of Police Lance Hebert said the story is relatively simple:

"It's people being stupid," he said.

It all began around 10 p.m. Sunday evening, when police were called to 414 Park Ave. for a report of a break-in at a house two doors down at 418 Park Ave. The caller, Elisia Barretto, told police her son Jonathan, 21, of 418 Park Ave., had knocked on the door a few minutes earlier and told she and her husband that a group of men had kicked in the back door of his house and were trying to get inside. Mrs. Barretto told police that her son and husband had left her house and were chasing the suspects through the streets of Island Park.

Police were called to 414 Park Ave. for a report of a break-in at a house two doors down at 418 Park Ave, shown here.

All three Portsmouth police cruisers on the road were dispatched to the area, and after officers talked with Mrs. Barretto, responded to the flea market area. When they arrived, Deputy Chief Hebert said officers heard a number of shots; shortly afterward, Patrolman Garrett Coyne apprehended the younger Barretto at gunpoint and seized a Glock handgun.

At that point, Deputy Chief Hebert said officers weren't aware that someone had been shot; only that shots had been fired. But that changed when police received a call from the Portsmouth Fire Department that crews were treating a 17-year-old Newport man with a gunshot wound.

What happened?

Police believe that as they were responding the scene, the Barrettos chased the four would-be burglars toward the beach area and Fountain Avenue boat ramp. When they got there, the burglars jumped into a Jeep Cherokee and fled the scene. Before they could escape, though, the younger Barretto fired at the truck with the Glock, hitting the 17-year-old, a passenger, in the back. The bullet traveled through the boy, exiting through his chest. The boy was taken to Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, where Deputy Chief Hebert said he was listed in good to fair condition Tuesday

Follow-up investigations suggest that the men and teen attempted to break into the younger Barretto's house to "get back what they claim was done wrong to them," the deputy chief said. Apparently, all involved had completed a drug transaction earlier in the day and the would-be burglars apparently thought they'd been cheated.

Deputy chief Hebert said the investigation is far from over, though he, the chief, uniform officers and the detective's division have been working the case steadily since Sunday night. He also wouldn't say whether the police had any prior dealings with the Barrettos, other than the fact that "if we did, they were nothing like this."

Portsmouth is usually a bit more quiet than it was Sunday, the deputy chief said, and the last shooting he is familiar was the murder of Sanjeev Patel at the Founder's Brook Motel on Jan. 1, 2002. Sunday's shooting just goes to show what can happen, even here, he said.

"It can happen anywhere. Things got out of control."

Sunday's shooting:
Who's involved

Five men and a juvenile have been charged in connection with the shooting of a 17-year-old Newport boy in Island Park Sunday night. They are:

* Jonathan K. Barretto, 21, of 418 Park Ave. The alleged shooter, Mr. Barretto was charged with three counts of felony assault with a dangerous weapon and firing in a compact area. Arraigned Monday in Newport District Court, Mr. Barretto did not enter a plea and was released after paying 430,000 bail with surety.

* Joseph Barretto, 55, of 414 Park Ave., was charged with three counts of felony assault with a dangerous weapon. Arraigned Monday, he was released on $5,000 bail with surety.

* Bryan J. Newbold, 19, of 203 Railroad Ave., was charged with conspiracy to commit breaking and entering and attempted breaking and entering. He was held without bail for allegedly violating the terms of probation for a previous possession of marijuana charge.

* Bradley B. Smith Jr., 19, of Newport, was charged with conspiracy to commit attempted breaking and entering. He was released on $5,000 bail with surety.

* Gregory T. Vieira, 19, of Newport, was charged with burglary and two counts of felony assault with a dangerous weapon. He was released on personal recognizance.

* The shooting victim, whose name was not released because of his age, has been charged with burglary.

By Ted Hayes

thayes@eastbaynewspapers.com