Remillard boxed out of Hartford, Connecticut and last fought in the ring back in March, suffering his first loss after starting his career with 23 straight wins. Remillard had to pick himself up off the canvas three times in the bout against Featherweight Miguel Angel Garcia, who was 24-0 going into the contest. Born in Manchester, CT, Remillard found his first success in the town's Police Athletic League boxing program. He became a professional boxer in 2005. Before losing his last fight in March, he was a top-10-ranked featherweight.
The victim of the January 5, 2010 attack, Jordan Evans, needed seven plates and thirty screws for two skull fractures the arrest warrant states, adding that one plate and eight screws were needed to repair fractures in his left hand. Evans also reportedly suffers from double vision in his left eye and no feeling in his forehead.
The incident took place in Marlborough, Connecticut. First, Evans spotted Remillard's car at a store. Evans followed the vehicle to 121 Ogden Lord Road, the home of Danielle Napolitano. Evans and Remillard both shared a dating relationship with Napolitano at different times. The warrant explains that Evans asked Remillard what was going on with him and Danielle, and he and Remillard "got into each other's faces" and started punching each other before Evans left.
Napolitano sent a text to Evans after he stormed off, asking him to come back to her house. She wrote that she was all alone, the warrant states. The ex-boyfriend turned around and drove back to the house. When he arrived, Danielle Napolitano was waiting for him at the door, inviting him into a darkened room.
"Evans stated that when he turned the corner he saw a baseball bat hitting him in the face," the warrant states. He turned around and "Remillard swung the baseball bat at him again and again, hitting him in the arm and the hand." The woman's brothers Adam Napolitano and Richard Napolitano then punched him in the face, Evans told the state police.
Evans left the house and ran to his car, where Remillard reportedly hit him two more times with the bat, and the Napolitanos again punched him, the warrant states. Once he got into his car, Remillard started smashing the windshield and sun roof, saying he was going to kill him and his family, it states. Evans wound up going to a neighbor's house for help.
When the state police interviewed Remillard, he denied using a bat to beat Evans, claiming he just punched him in the face, the warrant states. "Remillard went on to say that he is a professional boxer and that he has a solid punch," the warrant explains. All charges against the Napolitanos were dropped as the case developed and the co-defendants agreed to cooperate against Remillard and testify for the prosecution. Remillard plead no contest to the charges rather than face trial with such daunting odds against an acquittal. The sentencing will interrupt a stellar career, and behind bars Remillard will be relegated to fights with boredom, regret, and fellow inmates.
A former trainer of Remillard, John Scully, insists the boxer he once worked with is a bright kid who found himself in a tough situation and lost control. "For me, it should just be a lesson too all other kids out there. Kids are kids and things happen, but at the end of the day you will be held accountable for your actions, Scully said about his former pupil. "Matt is a good kid, really. I've known him for a long, long time, but he got caught up in something that spun wildly out of control. In my eyes he is obviously very lucky he didn't kill that guy because he'd be looking at life."
Looking forward, it's all about redemption now for Remillard. His time in prison can change him for the better or make him bitter for life. Since he is still relatively young for a boxer, if he serves the full term he can still have a viable future in the sport when he gets out. Should any serious civil case develop against the boxer, he may actually be forced to resume his career to pay off his debts after his release.
Scully is no stranger to dealing with boxers who get caught up in crime and violence outside the gym, though he often sees the sport rescue such people from the prospect of winding up incarcerated. He knows this setback will interfere with much more than Remillard's career as a boxer. "It sucks that this happened for him not just as a boxer but as a person. I mean, forget about he boxing end if it," said Scully. "That's secondary now. He is now looking at basically losing five years of his life for an incident where he allowed his emotions to get the best of him."
