Friday, February 17, 2012

New Bedford, MA: Mass. man pleads guilty to killing mom, girlfriend

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (AP) — A New Bedford man faces life without parole after admitting he fatally stabbed his mother and his girlfriend in 2009.

Bristol District Attorney Sam Sutter said Friday 39-year-old Gary Gomes pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the slaying of 48-year-old Robyn Mendes and manslaughter in the death of 61-year-old Katherine Gomes.

Their bodies were found in a New Bedford apartment after neighbors smelled natural gas. Police found Gomes barricaded with a third person who wasn't hurt.

The New Bedford Standard Times reports Gomes had a history of violence toward Mendes, including an assault conviction and restraining orders. Prosecutors said he dressed her body and put it on a bed near an "I love you" message written in blood on a wall. They said he killed his mother two days earlier.

Sentencing is on Thursday.

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