The murder trial of a teenager accused of decapitating his Lawrence High School classmate in 2016 entered its fourth day Thursday as jurors saw texts sent prior to the alleged murder and heard an interview that police had with the suspect after the victim was beheaded.
Mathew Borges, 18, is charged with first-degree murder in the November 2016 death of Lee Manuel Viloria-Paulino. He was 15 at the time but is being tried as an adult.
In court Thursday, Borges’ voice could be heard in a 90-minute interview telling investigators that he did not murder Viloria-Paulino.
“No, I didn’t kill Lee. Lee was nice to me. He respected me. I respected him,” Borges told an officer when asked if he was responsible for the heinous murder.
Despite Borges’ interview, prosecutors presented incriminating evidence that included surveillance video and texts from a Facebook chat group.
Surveillance video from the night of the murder shows Borges and Viloria-Paulino walking to the Merrimack River to smoke marijuana, according to prosecutors. One of four teens who later returned to the victim’s home and allegedly robbed it of an array of items testified that he overheard Borges talking on the phone about the murder.
“When he answered the phone, I heard him say he’s [Viloria-Paulino] dead,” the witness, who did not appear on camera, told the court of Borges’ phone call.
Lawrence police detective Angel Mejia read texts allegedly sent by Borges that detailed a plan to lure the victim out of his house, set up the robbery, and carry out the murder weeks before the killing took place.
One text that Mejia read aloud said, “Guys Ima kill someone on Halloween. I’m not lying. So if you hear someone dead on the news that we know I just want to say that ya’ll gonna look at me different.”
When the trial opened on Monday in Salem Superior Court, prosecutors introduced a journal kept by Borges, which cited jealousy over a former girlfriend as a driving factor in the alleged murder.
On Tuesday, a dog walker described what it was like to discover Viloria-Paulino’s body on the banks of the river and a state trooper spoke about finding his head floating in a plastic bag.
Jonathan Miranda, 18, took the stand Wednesday and said Borges told him, along with other friends, that he cut off Viloria-Paulino’s head in an effort to get away with murder.
“He told me he killed Lee and cut off his head,” Miranda told the court. “He said that he stabbed him.”
Borges’ defense has suggested that Viloria-Paulino may have been killed in a violent gang attack.
No DNA, no weapon and no physical evidence that link Borges to the crime have been found.
Jurors are expected to travel to Lawrence on Friday to get a firsthand view of the murder scene.
A not guilty plea was previously entered on behalf of Borges.
(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)