Inset: Mathew Locke (MassLive). Background: The home where Locke killed Sara Bermudez and her three children (WFXT).
A man from Massachusetts has been handed down a life sentence for brutally killing his cousin’s wife and her three children, setting their bodies on fire, and falsely attributing the crime to the infamous gang Mara Salvatrucha, commonly known as MS-13.
Mathew Locke, 38, received a sentencing of four consecutive life terms – one for each victim – for the murders of Sara Bermudez, 38, and her children Madison, 8, James, 6, and Michael, 2. He was found guilty of first-degree murder, which included deliberate premeditation, extreme atrocity and cruelty, and felony murder with the underlying crimes of armed burglary and aggravated rape, as stated by the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office. Additionally, he was convicted of armed burglary and arson of a dwelling.
During the sentencing, Moses Bermudez, the husband of Sara and cousin of Locke, expressed his sentiments to the judge, saying, “There’s a special place in hell for people that do things like this,” as reported by the Worcester Telegram & Gazette.
“The deaths of this mother and her children were some of the most heinous ever seen by this office,” District Attorney Joe Early said.
The bloodshed happened on Feb. 28, 2018, at a home in West Brookfield. The victims were killed, and then the defendant poured diesel gasoline over them and the room and lit it on fire, Worcester Assistant District Attorney Terry J. McLaughlin told the jury, the Boston Globe reported.
Police conducting a welfare check the following day found the bodies in an upstairs bedroom. Prosecutors said they linked the defendant to the crime through DNA found on the genitals of Sara Bermudez and her young daughter, as well as other evidence.
Afterward, Locke told police a bizarre story about MS-13 being responsible. He said at one point that his cousin — Bermudez’s husband — told him, “They should pay attention to the news in the coming days because anyone associated with MS-13 was going to get hurt and die,” public radio station WBUR reported, citing court documents.
“Locke’s statement indicated that members of MS-13 were responsible for the murders,” the documents said, according to the outlet.
Bermudez’s husband and a third person Locke mentioned to police about hearing about the alleged MS-13 connection both denied to police saying anything about MS-13 to Locke, the station reported. Speculation about the gang link was fueled because Bermudez was from El Salvador, where MS-13 started.
Locke has a history of domestic violence and arson.
