A Boston man has been convicted in the murder of a New Jersey woman whose body was found burning eight years ago in Bridgewater, Massachusetts.
The office of Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz said Wednesday that 51-year-old Fernando Owens of Dorchester had been found guilty of first-degree murder and aggravated kidnapping.
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The body of Ashley Bortner, a 29-year-old mother from Paulsboro, New Jersey, was found on fire on Nov. 3, 2015, near train tracks. Her hands and feet were bound, she had been gagged and her face was wrapped with a towel.
Prosecutors say they argued during the seven-day trial that Owens believed Bortner had "somehow played a role in the Suffolk county murder of Owens' son." Cruz said weeks after Bortner's killing that Owens thought she may have been involved in the death of 21-year-old Dominic Owens, who was shot to death earlier that day in Dorchester.
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Reporting from the scene of the younger Owens' death, the Boston Globe said the victim's father had joined grieving family members and declined to be interviewed. Later, after Cruz had announced Fernando Owens was a suspect, the Globe wrote that he "paced around, making calls on his cellphone" while visibly agitated on the night his son was shot.
The Boston Police Department has not announced an arrest in Dominic Owens' murder.
Authorities said in March of 2016 that Fernando Owens had been arrested in the Dominican Republic. He pleaded not guilty after being returned to the U.S.
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A New Hampshire couple have also been charged with murder and kidnapping. Cruz's office said 48-year-old Julian Squires is serving a mandatory life sentence after being convicted last year, while 46-year-old Shannon Squires is scheduled to appear in court on July 20.
Owens is scheduled to be sentenced Friday morning in Plymouth Superior Court.
