Crime & Safety
Murdered Woman Found Topless, Bound In Braintree Hotel: DA
'I hope she never has her baby daughter,' the mother of a 19-year-old murder victim said outside court.
BRAINTREE, MA — The victim in a 2017 murder at the Hyatt Place in Braintree was part of a sex and robbery operation, according to prosecutors. The person who recruited the victim into the operation, 19-year-old Juana Rivera, who residents in Lynn and Lowell, pleaded not guilty in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham to charges of first-degree murder, assault with intent to murder, unarmed robbery, kidnapping, conspiracy, human sex trafficking, and prostitution. She is being held without bail.
Prosecutors say 19-year-old Reina Rodriguez of Lawrence was found dead, nude from the waist up, and bound with cell phone cables in a hotel room at the Hyatt on June 22, 2017. It's alleged that she was brought into the operation by Rivera, who told the essentially homeless teen that she could make a lot of money. The two, along with others, ran ads on Backpage.com with the intent of luring clients to hotel rooms to rob them.
It's alleged that Rivera conspired with Kentavious Coleman and Kenyonte Galmore to rob Rodriguez. Those two men are in police custody in Mississippi on unrelated charges, according to prosecutors.
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Following the arrangement, Rodriguez's mother, Sigrid Garcia, said her daughter knew Rivera through a mutual friend. She declined to address the remark that Rodriguez was essentially homeless, but said she was happy to see Rivera in court.
"Now, she has a baby daughter and now she can’t be with her baby daughter and I hope she never has her baby daughter," Garcia said outside of court. "She took away my baby daughter and she was a very good girl. It’s not because it’s my daughter but everyone who knows my daughter knows how beautiful a heart my daughter had."
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Rodriguez's older sister Sigrid Rached said she felt relief once Rivera entered the courtroom and never lost faith that someone would be charged with murdering her sister.
"I know there is a God up there and everything you do here, you pay here and my faith was held on to my sister’s memory and I knew my sister would get her justice and that day is finally here," Rached said. "I miss her love and our bond. She was my best friend. But I know she’s ok now and I know she’ll get the justice she deserves."
Another suspect, Jason McLeod, 35, of Mattapan was recently indicted for human trafficking and deriving support from prostitution stemming from his relationship with Rodriguez. McLeod was arrested over the weekend by Maine State Police who learned of the warrant for his arrest during a routine traffic stop, according to the DA's office.
Rivera is due back in court May 10 for a pre-trial hearing.
Image Credit: Dan Libon
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