Three Massachusetts men have pleaded not guilty in connection with the death of a man whose body was found burned and covered in bubble wrap in a wooded area of Worcester earlier this year.
Rafael Guzman, 35, of Worcester, entered a plea of not guilty Wednesday in Worcester Superior Court in the death of his step-uncle 30-year-old Benjamin Pacheco. Guzman was held without bail.
Primitivo Matos, 35, and Daniel L. Rivera, 36, both of Worcester, each pleaded not guilty to a charge of accessory after the fact in Pacheco's death. Matos was ordered held on a bail of $25,000, while Rivera was held on $75,000 bail.
Prosecutors said Guzman admitted to a friend that he stabbed and killed Pacheco inside his Great Brook Valley apartment on Sept. 9.
Pacheco's body was found after firefighters responded to a report of a fire in a grassy area on the morning of Sept. 10, according to prosecutors. Authorities said Pacheco, a local music producer, appeared to have suffered a neck wound.
Surveillance footage shows Guzman entering his building on that same day with a large role of bubble-wrapping material and backing his car up to the building, according to authorities. Guzman and two other men were also seen carrying a large bundle wrapped in bubble wrap from the back of the building and put it in a vehicle's trunk.
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Video also showed the car in the area where Pacheco's body was found, according to court documents.
Outside of court, Guzman's family defended him.
"He's a good guy, he's a good guy. That's it," said a relative.
Pacheco's family said they just want justice.
"Obviously it's really difficult," Pacheco's sister said. "We just want justice for my brother. That's it."
The three men are due back in court on Feb. 14.
