SALEM, Mass. (AP) — The trial of a Massachusetts teenager charged with killing and beheading a high school classmate is getting underway after several postponements.
Jury selection in Mathew Borges’ trial is scheduled to start Monday, with opening statements expected Wednesday.
Borges is charged with first-degree murder in the November 2016 death of 16-year-old Lee Manuel Viloria-Paulino. The now-17-year-old Borges was 15 at the time, but is being tried as an adult.
Both were students at Lawrence High School at the time.
Viloria-Paulino’s body was found near the Merrimack River by a woman walking her dog, a couple of weeks after his family reported him missing. Police found his head nearby. The motive remains unclear.
Borges’ defense team has suggested that Viloria-Paulino was the victim of a violent gang.
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