Suspect in Virginia students' murders expected to enter guilty pleas

[March 01, 2016]  By Gary Robertson
 
 RICHMOND, Va. (Reuters) - A former hospital worker is expected to enter guilty pleas this week to the high-profile murder and abduction of two Virginia university students, prosecutors said on Monday.

The suspect, Jesse Matthew Jr., 34, of Charlottesville, has been charged in the disappearance and death of University of Virginia student Hannah Graham in 2014 and of Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington in 2009.

He is expected to enter the guilty pleas during a pretrial hearing in Albemarle County Circuit Court on Wednesday, prosecutor Robert Tracci said in an emailed statement.

“In the interest of protecting the judicial process, our office is unable to provide any additional details as to the specific details of the pleas,” Tracci said.

Prosecutors had said they would seek the death penalty in the Graham case while Matthew was scheduled to face trial for the Harrington murder next year.

The disappearance and deaths of the two college students drew national attention and shocked the area about 100 miles (160 km) southwest of Washington.

Matthew, a former college football player, pleaded guilty last year to a 2005 sexual assault in Fairfax County, Virginia. He is already serving three life terms.

Graham, a sophomore, was 18 when she went missing in September 2014. Charlottesville police said she and Matthew were seen on a video surveillance camera walking on a downtown mall together.

Matthew fled the area but he was arrested on a beach in Galveston County, Texas, and returned to Virginia. Graham's remains were found near Charlottesville.

Harrington, 20, disappeared after leaving a Charlottesville concert in October 2009, police have said.

(Reporting by Gary Robertson; Editing by Alistair Bell and Alan Crosby)

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