Local News
Angel Alvarez, 68, was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 17 years, prosecutors said.
A North Dartmouth man was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to fatally stabbing his former partner in a Chelsea apartment in 2023, prosecutors said.
Angel Alvarez, 68, was sentenced Monday to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 17 years for the murder of Margarita Morehead, 59, the office of Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden said in a press release.
Alvarez pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, and violation of a protection order on February 11, the DA said.
Alvarez originally pleaded not guilty to all charges in September 2023, court documents show.
During the sentencing, Morehead’s children gave victim impact statements.
“Our mother, Margarita, was not defined by the way her life ended but by the way she lived, by the love she gave to family, the guidance she offered to others, and the quiet strength she carried every day,” Morehead’s son said to the courtroom.
Alvarez and Morehead were involved in a relationship “for several years,” and Alvarez lived “off and on” at Morehead’s Chelsea apartment, Hayden’s office said.
Throughout their partnership, Alvarez “exhibited jealousy and hostility toward Morehead,” and would frequently accuse her of cheating, the DA said.
In October 2022, Morehead was granted a restraining order against Alvarez which forbade him from contacting her. At the time of her murder, the order was still active, prosecutors said.
Despite the restraining order, Morehead and Alvarez remained in close contact, Hayden’s office said.
During the morning of May 8, 2023, the pair began arguing about Morehead’s “attempts to end their relationship,” prosecutors said.
Morehead threatened to call the police if Alvarez did not leave her home. Alvarez then punched Morehead twice in the face, prosecutors wrote in the statement of the case filed in court.
Morehead told Alvarez that her daughter — who was expected to visit later that day — would see her injuries, and he would “end up in jail,” prosecutors wrote.
Alvarez became “enraged” and grabbed a large kitchen knife, which he used to stab Morehead multiple times in the chest. During the attack, Alvarez cut “two of his own fingers,” prosecutors said.
After the stabbing, Alvarez fled the apartment and left Morehead to bleed out, the DA said.
A neighbor who heard Morehead’s screams watched Alvarez leave the apartment with a blood trail behind him, prosecutors said in the statement of the case.
The neighbor did not call police but “went twice during the next 40 minutes” to Morehead’s door. The neighbor heard breathing that “became increasingly faint,” prosecutors said.
The neighbor’s partner eventually contacted a domestic violence hotline, which called Chelsea police, Hayden’s office said.
When officers arrived, they found Morehead unconscious with multiple stab wounds to her chest and back, with the knife next to her body, the DA said.
Morehead was transported to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead, the DA said.
Throughout the day, Alvarez made “efforts to evade police,” Hayden’s office said.
Investigators located Alvarez’s car abandoned nearby with bloodstains inside and out of the vehicle. Security footage from a Target in Everett showed Alvarez buying new clothes to replace his bloody ones, the DA said.
In multiple phone calls that day, Alvarez told people he had stabbed Morehead and was considering hurting himself, prosecutors said.
Later that evening, Alvarez called police and turned himself in, prosecutors wrote.
“The statements in court today gave full expression to the great love Margarita Morehead had for her children and the great love they had for her. We’ll never know if Margarita’s life could have been saved if the neighbors had acted more quickly, but it’s clear that no one should wait to contact police if they have any reason to think that someone is a victim of violence,” Hayden said.
Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
