Man Guilty in Choking Death of Fellow Patient at UMass Psych Ward

WORCESTER — A Spencer man was found guilty of first degree murder in Worcester Superior Court on Monday for beating, choking and trying to suffocate a fellow patient at UMass-Memorial Medical Center.

Aldo W. Dunphe was found guilty in the 2013 slaying of a Ratna Bhattarai, from Worcester, in the psychiatric ward of UMass-Memorial Medical Center, according to Worcester County District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr.

Dunphe, 26, beat, choked and tried to suffocate Bhattarai on Nov. 5, 2013, and Bhattarai died two days later. The jury found that Dunphe carried out the killing with extreme atrocity or cruelty, one of the two theories of first-degree murder presented by prosecutors. He was also found guilty of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and assault and battery causing serious bodily injury, according to the DA's office.