QUINCY, MASS. (WHDH) - A suspect wanted in connection with the shooting death of a 17-year-old Weymouth High School student appeared in court on Tuesday, days after being taken into custody in Puerto Rico and returning to Massachusetts.
Appearing in Norfolk District Court on Tuesday, Keniel Diaz-Romero was the last co-defendant wanted for the 2022 shooting death of Nathan Paul, according to the Norfolk District Attorney’s office.
He and another suspect, Jaivon Harris, were originally indicted on murder and larceny charges three months after Paul was fatally shot in Quincy on Feb. 15, 2022.
While Harris was arrested and arraigned that year, authorities found Diaz-Romero had left the state, leading to an investigation that resulted in Quincy and Massachusetts State Police traveling to Puerto Rico to take the suspect into custody.
During his arraignment on Tuesday, Diaz-Romero pleaded not guilty to the charges he now faces and was ordered to be held without bail.
Members of Paul’s family could be heard crying out as Diaz-Romero walked into court.
During subsequent proceedings, prosecutors said Diaz-Romero is one of six people charged in connection with this case had been among the group that lured Paul to a Quincy neighborhood to rob him.
“Mr. Paul thought he was going there to sell vape cartridges to individuals he met on Snapchat,” a prosecutor said this week.
“The defendant, Mr. Diaz-Romero, pulled out the firearm he had in his pocket and shot twice into the vehicle,” the prosecutor continued.
The prosecutor said one bullet went through the driver’s side door of Paul’s car.
Paul was found suffering from a gunshot wound inside a crashed car after the shooting. Investigators said Diaz-Romero left the state hours after he pulled the trigger.
“The defendant, in the hours following the shooting, returned home, abruptly quit his job, wrote a goodbye letter to his mother, fled Quincy using a ride service, purchased a one-way ticket to Puerto Rico and departed within hours,” the prosecutor in Diaz-Romero’s case said.
While the prosecution laid out its case, the defense said the 19-year-old Diaz-Romero was born in Puerto Rico and has a significant family there.
The defense went on to question the evidence.
“The prosecution is relying almost exclusively on witnesses with major credibility problems themselves,” Diaz-Romero’s defense attorney said.
The attorney said witnesses “have provided a series of statements implicating my client while exculpating themselves.” The attorney continued, saying “the self-serving nature of those, I think, will become the basis of the trial that we look forward to having.”
Later speaking outside the courthouse in Quincy, members of Paul’s family were looking for accountability.
“Hopefully justice will be served as it should be,” said one woman named Jennifer.
Diaz-Romero is due back in court on Oct. 27.
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