Two men have been charged in connection with a fight earlier this year at Gillette Stadium that preceded the death of another man involved, the Norfolk District Attorney’s office said.
John Vieira, 59, and Justin Mitchell, 39, both from Warwick, Rhode Island, have been charged with assault, battery and disorderly conduct, the DA’s office said. They are set to be arraigned separately in January.
The men got into an altercation with Dale Mooney, 53, at the New England Patriots home opener against the Miami Dolphins on Sept. 12.
Mooney was in the 300-level seating of Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. when he had a “medical event,” police said in September, without elaborating on the event. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Mooney collapsed during the fight, the DA’s office said. At the time, it did not appear that Mooney had died due to traumatic injury, and first responders were able to identify a medical issue.
A witness told NBC News in September that Mooney was punched by a Dolphins fan and fell unconscious, adding that it appeared Mooney was already in distress from the fight before he was hit.
The medical examiner has since determined the cause of death was a probable cardiac dysrhythmia due to the stress of the physical altercation, the DA’s office said, which was ruled to be a homicide.
Based on the results of Mooney’s autopsy, as well as multiple video angles that captured the fight, the DA’s office said it did not “determine that the evidence established a basis for criminal prosecution of charges related to homicide,” in his death.
Mooney was an avid Patriots fan and a 30-year season ticket holder, according to a statement at the time from the Kraft Group, which owns Gillette Stadium.
An attorney for Mitchell did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday night. Court records do not indicate an attorney for Vieira, the DA’s office said.