Hialeah delivery driver guilty of woman’s murder and arson

WEST PALM BEACH, Florida (AP) — An appliance delivery man was convicted Wednesday of beating a 75-year-old woman to death and setting fire to her Florida home.

Palm Beach County District Judge found 24-year-old Jorge Dupree Lachaso guilty of first-degree murder, burglary and arson after a three-day trial. He faces a mandatory life sentence at an April 5 hearing.

Dupree Lachazo and another man delivered a Best Buy washer and dryer to Evelyn Smith Wudell’s home in Boca Raton in August 2019, officials said. After installing the devices, another man went outside and after a few minutes reported that he heard screams. He found the victim on the floor and called 911. Dupree Lachazo left in a delivery truck but was later stopped by an arriving police officer, investigators said.

Police found a rubber mallet used in the attack and a can of paint thinner used to start a fire next to Udell’s body. Prosecutors said both had Dupré Lachazo’s fingerprints. Investigators also found that the woman’s wallet had been tampered with, suggesting theft as a motive for the attack.

Defense lawyers did not deny that Dupre Lachazo attacked the elderly woman, but argued that the murder was not premeditated or premeditated.

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