A Boston man accused in connection with the death of a Dorchester woman is expected to plead guilty Wednesday in Suffolk Superior Court, six years after her remains were found stuffed in a trash bag in Stony Brook Reservation. Rinnyers Pena, 47, faces one count of disinterring a body in the case involving 38-year-old Alenny Matos.
According to WCVB, Matos was last seen on Jan. 26, 2020. Months later, a passerby discovered human remains wrapped in a plastic bag near Turtle Pond inside the Stony Brook Reservation, and investigators later confirmed Matos' identity through dental records. Pena was arrested on the disinterring charge in August 2021.
Prosecutors' account of movements
In a Suffolk County District Attorney's Office release, investigators said cell-site location data, security-camera footage and interviews indicate Pena picked up Matos at her Dorchester apartment on Jan. 26, 2020, then drove her to his Norton Street home. Later that day, prosecutors say, Pena went to the Turtle Pond and Enneking Parkway area inside Stony Brook Reservation, where they allege he abandoned her body. The 2021 release also noted that prosecutors were still awaiting findings from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner on the cause and manner of death.
Charges across multiple cases
As reported by Boston.com, Pena had already been arrested in June 2020 in a separate case on charges including kidnapping, rape and assault and battery on a family or household member. In another unrelated incident, prosecutors have accused him of raping and photographing a woman while she was naked and unconscious. The alleged victims in those cases have not been publicly identified.
Plea deals and families' questions
If Pena follows through with a guilty plea, the move would resolve the case without a trial. That kind of outcome can spare victims and witnesses the emotional strain of reliving events in open court, but it can also leave families feeling like they never heard the full story. A multi-year review of Suffolk County homicide cases by WCVB found that roughly 40% of filings ended in plea agreements, underscoring the trade-offs prosecutors weigh in complex and emotionally charged prosecutions.
Next steps in court
Pena is scheduled to appear in Suffolk Superior Court on Wednesday to enter his plea. If he pleads guilty, a sentencing date will be set and the court will determine how the case is formally resolved. “This family deserves answers,” the district attorney's office said in a 2021 Suffolk County District Attorney's Office statement, urging anyone with information to contact Boston police or the Suffolk County DA's tip line.
