A Somerville man pleaded guilty to manslaughter in his roommate’s death
Anthony Canejo Sr., 57, killed and then dismembered his 66-year-old roommate days after the victim had taken out a restraining order against him, prosecutors said.
A Somerville man pleaded guilty to manslaughter and other charges Tuesday in Middlesex Superior Court stemming from the 2014 death of his roommate, who he killed and then dismembered in an attempt to hide the remains, prosecutors said.
Anthony Canejo Sr., 57, charged with manslaughter, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, improper disposal of human remains, and violating a restraining order, killed Vincent Lalli, 66, during a fight inside their Sycamore Street apartment in January 2014 — days after Lalli had taken out the order against him, according to the Middlesex County District Attorney’s office.
Judge Merita Hopkins sentenced Canejo to 18 to 20 years in prison with 10 years of GPS-monitored probation, a press release from the district attorney’s office said.
Prosecutors said Lalli took out a restraining order against Canejo on Jan. 17, 2014, that mandated he stay away from him and the apartment the two men shared with Canejo’s 34-year-old son, Anthony Canejo Jr.
Early on Jan. 24, the senior Canejo, believing Lalli was asleep, entered the residence to retrieve his belongings, officials said. Lalli confronted him, and a fight broke out in which Canejo Sr. struck Lalli with a crowbar and strangled him, authorities have said.
Canejo Sr. dismembered Lalli in a bathtub and later, with his son on Jan. 24 and 25, cashed winning lottery tickets Lalli had recently purchased, the release said.
On Jan. 26, the father and son pair brought Lalli’s remains to Norwood, officials said. Three days later, a man walking his dog near Coakley Middle School found several plastic bags with the remains, as well as two, bloodied dark suitcases and a bloody towel, prosecutors said.
Authorities discovered additional remains near railroad tracks behind Somerville High School in late March — a month after both Canejo men were arrested and arraigned in Somerville District Court, according to the district attorney’s office.
“Based on the state of decomposition and dismemberment, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled the manner of death to be homicidal violence but a precise cause of death could not be identified due to the condition of the body,” the release said.
The case against the younger Canejo, who faces charges of being an accessory after the fact and two counts of receiving stolen property, remains in court, officials said.
