Crime & Safety

Gansett Man Charged With Murdering Mother

Robert Taylor, 45, is being charged with murder after his mother's body was found Tuesday.

2 p.m. Wednesday – According to additional reporting by The Providence Journal, Robert Taylor dismembered his mother after killing her, as police found her head and hands severed from her body.

The Journal said the information was obtained from the arrest warrant police secured for Taylor.

Police said a health worker was at the apartment when they spoke to Taylor, and that Taylor had asked her to bleach down the walls. He allegedly told the worker that his mother had left the apartment and checked herself into rehab.

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11:40 a.m. Wednesday – Robert M. Taylor, 45, of 130 Caswell St., Narragansett, is being charged with the murder of his mother, Allison, following a police investigation that began over the weekend.

According to a press release from Narragansett Police Chief Dean Hoxsie, the investigation was spurred by a larceny complaint over the weekend. The investigation led police to Taylor and his apartment at 130 Caswell Street on Tuesday, where police said officers immediately noticed signs of foul play.

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Rev. Marcel Taillon of the St. Thomas More Church told The Providence Journal that he had noticed Taylor lingering around the church the past few days.

The reverend told The Journal that collection boxes had been broken into and kitchen items stolen. Taylor was allegedly caught on surveillance camera, which lead police to the nearby apartment complex on Caswell Street.

Police said that based on conditions of the apartment and the outside area near the dumpster, detectives were called in and a search was begun. Police said human remains, later identified as Taylor’s mother, were found in the dumpster.

According to Narragansett police, Taylor was arrested and charged with murder with a domestic violence modifier on Tuesday night. Police said that at no point was the public in any danger, and Taylor was under officer supervision all of Tuesday.

Taylor was scheduled for arraignment at Fourth Division District Court at 11 a.m. Typically in capital cases involving a violent crime, bail is not granted.

According to online records, Taylor has more than a dozen arrests, dating back to 2002.

Taylor pleaded to Narragansett and Providence police charges of trespassing, and breaking and entering in 2006, 2007 and 2010, serving about four stints ranging from 30 to 90 days. Substance abuse counseling has also been a part of various pleas.

The building at 130 Caswell is owned by Driftwood Preservation Association as of 2005, which was formerly a limited partnership named Driftwood Associates.

The Herefords owned the building from 1946 to 1989, and the Moultons from 1943 to 1946. The building and accessory structures were last assessed at $1.6 million, and the land at $427,200.

We will update as more information becomes available.

6:20 p.m. Tuesday – Narragansett and Rhode Island State Police are investigating an apartment building on Caswell Street near the intersection of Rodman Street.

Narragansett Police Chief Dean Hoxsie released a statement at about 3:52 p.m. stating that they were in the “preliminary phases” of an investigation.

Several officers from both departments were at the scene on Tuesday afternoon, along with Special Assistant Attorney General Amy Dodge. She is usually the head prosecutor for felony court cases at Washington County Superior Court.

As of 6 p.m., no information has been released about why police or officials were at the building. Blue tarps were setup at the site, and a truck from the medical examiner’s office left at about 5:38 p.m.


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