Michael Lewis Pleads Guilty To Two Decades Old Slayings Linked To Mob Boss Whitey Bulger.

Grapevine TV

A South Boston man has admitted responsibility for two long-unsolved killings that date back nearly four decades—one of which investigators believe may have been connected to infamous mob boss James “Whitey” Bulger. Michael Lewis, 65, entered a plea deal with prosecutors on Wednesday, pleading guilty to two counts of manslaughter for the 1984 and 1993 homicides, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. Authorities said Lewis first faced charges for the 1993 murder of 46-year-old William Villani, who was found dead inside his office at Two Sterling Square in South Boston. Villani, Lewis’s supervisor at the Boston Housing Authority’s Pest Control Unit, was discovered beaten, stabbed, and shot the day after he failed to return home from work on April 16, 1993. Lewis also confessed to killing Brian Watson, 23, whose body was discovered off Interstate 93 in Manchester, New Hampshire, in July 1984. Investigators believe Watson’s death stemmed from a drug-related dispute possibly linked to Bulger’s criminal network. During the sentencing hearing, Watson’s loved ones delivered powerful victim impact statements, describing the lingering pain caused by his loss. His fiancée recounted the dreams they shared before his life was “stolen” that tragic night, while his sister Jacqueline Carter spoke of a “profound pain” that has haunted their family for 41 years. Lewis, who was already serving time for Villani’s murder when charged with Watson’s killing in 2023, was sentenced to two concurrent 15-year prison terms at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center.  #Boston #Massachusetts #BostonMassachusetts #SouthBoston #MichaelLewis #Guilty #Manslaughter #Homicide #BrianWatson #WhiteyBulger #MobBoss #Manchester #NewHampshire #ManchesterNewHampshire #I93 #WilliamVillani #BostonHousingAuthority #BostonHousing #SuffolkCounty #DistrictAttorney #JacquelineCarter #SouzaBaranowskiCorrectionalCenter #CorrectionalCenter #CriminalNetwork #DrugDispute #Drugs

Transcript

00:00Wheelchair-bound 65-year-old Michael Lewis facing justice today for crimes committed decades ago.

00:06Do you wish to change your plea from not guilty to guilty?

00:09Guilty.

00:10Lewis pleading guilty to manslaughter charges for killing two men, including Brian Watson, in 1984.

00:17While the three men drove around South Boston, Lewis turned to the backseat, pointed a firearm at Watson, and shot and killed him.

00:25The 23-year-old murdered during a drug-dealing dispute the DA's office linked to notorious South Boston gangster, Whitey Bulger.

00:33Lewis' attorney denies any connection.

00:36Watson's body was then dumped off a New Hampshire highway.

00:39I do not forgive you.

00:41Watson's daughter, only three years old when her father was killed, called Lewis a coward.

00:46Well, you lived your life freely for years.

00:49We lived with the emptiness you created.

00:52We carried the weight of what you did.

00:54Lewis also pleaded guilty to shooting William Villani in 1993, his then-supervisor at the Boston Housing Authority, over a work dispute.

01:03The prosecutor says they faced challenges proving murder charges at trial, including unreliable witnesses.

01:10There's risks to both sides in this litigation.

01:14Lewis was offered the chance to speak, but declined.

01:17Of course he feels remorse, or he would not have pled guilty voluntarily today to both of these crimes.

01:25So, yes, of course he feels remorse.

01:29Now, as part of the plea deal, the prosecution and defense agreed to a 15-year prison sentence.

01:35The judge told family members of the victims she hopes the outcome gives them some sense of peace.

01:40It was...

01:41The judge told family members of the victims, andкое倒ism this way to deal with anyone.

01:58And as part of the conduct would probably help us raise a number of Namajous bodies byっ voguing laten.

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