A Winchester man was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murder of his mother and two pet cats, say Winchester Police.
Matthew McAveeney, 48, pleaded guilty to beating his mother, Barbara McAveeney, 70, to death in October 2014. McAveeny lived with his mother at the time. He faces charges of first-degree murder, assault and battery on a person over the age of 60 and two counts of animal cruelty.
Barbara McAveeney’s body was discovered by a repairman and building manager who made their way in to the McAveeny’s apartment while Matthew McAveeney was away. The accused had apparently asked the repairman to return later when he came to the apartment the previous day.
Video footage acquired by the police showed McAveeney removing furniture and evidence from the apartment and placing it in the apartment complex’s dumpsters. McAveeney fled Massachusetts and was apprehended in Belmont, North Carolina about a week after the body was discovered.
