PRINCETON, MASS. (WHDH) - The suspect accused of killing 27-year-old jogger Vanessa Marcotte in August 2016 changed his plea to guilty in court, according to the Worcester County DA’s Office.
Marcotte’s body was found hours after she went missing following a run while she was visiting her mother’s home. The former Google employee was visiting from New York City, where she lived at the time. Her body was found naked and partially burned in nearby woods.
The suspect, Angelo Colon-Ortiz, 36, was arrested months after Marcotte’s death and after over 1,300 tips poured in. He originally pleaded not guilty. Investigators have said that DNA found under Marcotte’s fingernails matched his.
Prosecutors said he was working as a delivery driver in the area at the time of the killing. Police managed to catch Colon-Ortiz after a trooper spotted a dark SUV in Worcester whose make and driver matched a description of a suspect. The trooper wrote the license plate on his hand and authorities later obtained DNA from the suspect, which matched the DNA collected from the crime scene.
His lawyers had fought to get the DNA evidence in the case tossed out.
Colon-Ortiz was sentenced to serve life in prison for the murder charge, and will not be eligible for parole for 45 years.
The Marcotte family asked the office to accept the plea, which would spare them from listening to the details of their loved one’s death during a trial.
“The completion of this case is the result of the tireless and committed work of the Massachusetts State Police, Princeton Police and Assistant District Attorneys who were involved in the investigation and prosecution of Vanessa’s killer,” Worcester County DA Joseph Early said. “We know nothing can bring Vanessa back, but we know, through the meticulous work of the prosecutors and investigators involved, justice will be served, and the plea allows Vanessa’s family to move on from this tragedy.”
“We are thankful and gratified the legal process has accomplished what we always wished for, that this man will now be in a place where he can’t hurt anyone else like the way he hurt Vanessa,” the Marcotte family said. “To honor and remember Vanessa, we will continue to educate and protect women through the Vanessa T. Marcotte Foundation.”
This foundation was established in 2017 in Vanessa Marcotte’s honor. Since its inception, it has trained thousands of women on self-defense, violence prevention, runner safety, boundary setting and healthy relationships.
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