BOSTON (WHDH) - A Revere man who brutally murdered his wife, a beloved school teacher in Lynn, was found guilty Monday of first-degree murder.
A Suffolk Superior Court grand jury convicted 31-year-old Andrew MacCormack of strangling and repeatedly stabbing his wife, 30-year-old Vanessa MacCormack.
Vanessa’s mother Karen mouthed “thank you” to the jury after the verdict was read.
Vanessa MacCormack was found dead inside the couple’s home on Grand View Avenue in Revere in 2017. She had been strangled, beaten, stabbed several times, and suffocated with a trash bag while the couple’s 1-year-old daughter was home.
The state’s chief medical examiner found that Vanessa MacCormack suffered a blunt force injury to the head, sharp force injuries to the neck and asphyxiation.
Prosecutors said Andrew MacCormack “went to great lengths” in an effort to cover up the crime.
Andrew MacCormack left the house after the murder with his daughter, withdrew $100 from an ATM, bought cocaine in East Boston, and then returned home, where he used bleach to wipe down the bloody crime scene before calling 911, according to prosecutors.
He also brought his daughter with him to a friend’s home in Saugus, where he completed a carpentry job. On the way there, he texted the victim’s phone to create the appearance that he was unaware of her death.
Just days before the murder, court documents indicated that Vanessa MacCormack texted her husband about his drug use and financial problems and said, “I hate you so much, you’ve ruined our daughter’s life because she won’t have her parents together. I’ll talk to an agent tomorrow about listing the house and I’ll look into divorce lawyers.”
Prior to the murder, Andrew MacCormack had forged checks to himself from his wife’s personal bank account and took one of her credit cards, which she had reported stolen. He also stole her wedding ring and pawned his own band for $120.
During the trial, Andrew MacCormack’s lawyers disputed the accusations, arguing that the two were a happy couple. They also argued that investigators did not look hard enough at other potential suspects.
Vanessa MacCormack worked as a second-grade teacher at Connery Elementary School.
Family members described her as the world’s best mother to her daughter, a loving wife, and a devoted daughter and sister.
Andrew MacCormack’s sentencing is set for Dec. 2. He faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.
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