Coelho found guilty of first degree murder in shooting of Fall River convenience store owner

FALL RIVER ― A jury found 40-year-old Nelson Coelho guilty of first-degree felony murder in the 2021 shooting of convenience store owner Lal Kishor Mahaseth on Tuesday.

The jury also found him guilty of two counts of armed robbery and possessing a firearm without a license in the fatal shooting of the Fall River convenience store owner.

He was sentenced to life without possibility of parole for the murder. Judge Raffi Yessayan also sentenced him to eight to 10 years in state prison for armed robbery.

Mahaseth immigrated to the United States from Nepal after earning a degree in education in that country. A memorial service was held in the city, where his fellow countrymen and customers praised him for his kindness. His body was brought back to Nepal for a traditional Hindu funeral.

Victim's family speaks out

Mahaseth's three adult children, Anjali, Murali and Abhishek Mahaseth, attended the seven-day trial, at times stepping out of the courtroom during graphic videos taken on surveillance cameras inside their father's store on the night of his murder. During closing arguments, the three siblings turned away when prosecutors showed the videos to the jury again.

Anjali Mahaseth, 25, a nurse, and her younger brother, Murali, a university student, spoke before sentencing, giving emotional impact statements. A few of the jurors released from their duties attended the sentencing shortly after the verdict.

Anjali Mahaseth said that the murder of her father and "the senseless act of violence has had a profound affect on my family."

"My father wasn't just a victim of a crime. He was a loving family [man], a devoted husband and a pillar in the community," said Anjali Mahaseth.

Murali Mahaseth said he didn't know his father until he was 7 years old, his father coming to the United States when he was born, "to get a better life for his wife and children."

"He was the best dad he could be," said Murali Mahaseth, adding he'll never be the same after his father's death.

"I'll never be able to tell him I got into a really good college, which is what he always wanted. I'll never be able to show him the man I'm becoming," said Marali Mahaseth. "The world lost a great man."

"The man I knew spared no efforts in helping others whenever he could, and he's dearly missed by everyone who got to know him," said Marali Mahaseth.

Mahaseth's murder

Mahaseth was killed by a single bullet to the chest on Oct. 18, 2021, when he attempted to fend off Coelho, who was disguised in black clothing from head to toe, during a robbery attempt by throwing a desk chair over the store’s counter. Mahaseth's body was found by a customer more than an hour after the shooting.

A witness testified that Coelho, a homeless crack cocaine addict, was on a drug-fueled binge when he robbed the 7 Days Food Mart on Durfee Street on Oct. 17, 2021, where he made off with over $1,200, and then cased Mahaseth's store on Rock Street before attempting to rob him and ultimately shooting the shop owner.

Mahaseth’s three adult children, who attended have attended the trial every day, turned away from a large screen where prosecutors replayed the graphic video images of the shooting death of their father during closing arguments.

Coelho has been in custody since he was arrested a week after the murder.

Defense: Coelho was 'the fall guy,' says someone else committed murder

The jury heard nearly four days of testimony before both sides rested on Friday afternoon, May 3.

They began deliberations around noon on Monday, May 6. Later in the day and before the court broke for the day, the jury sent two questions to Yessayan, requesting clarification of the difference between intent to commit murder and pre-meditation; and the difference between convicting a reasonable person and someone under the influence. The questions indicate the jury may have been deliberating between first-degree murder and second-degree murder.

Throughout the trial, defense attorney Dana Sargent raised issues of reasonable doubt, including the theory that another man may have committed the crimes: Samuel “Junior” Lozano, who pleaded guilty as the getaway driver in the 7 Days Food Mart robbery. During testimony, it was revealed that he had supplied the gun to Coelho.

'Be his alibi': Witness describes drug binge before 2021 convenience store killing

Lozano was imprisoned for the crime but has since been released. He was not called by prosecutors as a witness at trial.

Sargent reminded the jury in his closing argument that Lozano had a son dispose of the weapon, which was never recovered by police.

Lozano lived in a squalid multi-family residence at 251 Pine St. with his wife and five children, and where Coelho was squatting in a hallway on the second floor.

Lozano’s wife, Alyssa Imhoff, testified, as did Lozano’s downstairs neighbor, Mary Jo Duncan. Sargent said the women were in fear of Lozano and trying to protect him, calling Coelho “the fall guy.”

Duncan testified that she would have sex for money and give it to Lozano, who would then supply her with drugs.

She also testified that she got rid of a pair of Nike athletic shoes for Lozano in the woods off Wilson Road — the same pair seen being worn by Coelho in surveillance cameras earlier in the day of the murder at another convenience store, then again in video that captured Mahaseth’s killing, worn by the disguised suspect.

Follow the case: Fall River man arraigned on murder charge in shooting death of convenience store owner

Sargent noted in closing that, when the police recovered the pair of athletic shoes, the laces were missing.

“We heard all this talk of handler DNA. What do you handle on your damn shoes? You handle the laces. Where are the damn laces?” said Sargent, adding there was no physical evidence to prosecute Coelho.

Prosecutors: Robbery method, tattoos, testimony point to Coelho as killer

But Assistant District Attorney Patrick Driscoll alleged the evidence showed that the same person who robbed the 7 Days convenience store, by aiming a gun at the chest of a clerk, also robbed Mahaseth.

“The next night, a few blocks up from there at 201 Rock St. at the Stop N Save convenience store, the evidence proves to you that Lal Mahaseth was in his store, tending to his business when an armed man came in, pointed a gun at him, during a botched robbery,” said Driscoll, saying Coelho committed both sets of crimes.

What to know: Man charged with murder in the fatal shooting of Fall River convenience store owner

“Different days, different locations, same man, same method of operation,” Driscoll said. “Watch the video of these two crimes.”

Driscoll said the first robbery went without any problems and Coelho was “flush with money.” Bristol County District Attorney’s star witness, Meredith Silvia, testified that before the robbery Coelho had altered his hand tattoos with a marker or a pen to disguise them.

On the following night’s robbery, things started going wrong quickly, said Driscoll.

Silvia testified that she had shared crack cocaine with Coelho and Lozano, and had been having sexual relations with Coelho.

Some of the most damning evidence presented by Driscoll and co-prosecutor Dennis Collins were the tattoos on Coelho’s hands and forearms, which were captured on the video surveillance cameras inside Mahaseth’s store.

The photos capture a tattoo on Coelho’s left hand, holding the handgun, that depict five dots on his wrist and a tattoo on his right hand with the word “Nelly.” The tattoo was visible when Coelho went behind Mahaseth’s counter to retrieve the ammunition clip, which popped out of his gun.

Driscoll reiterated that Silvia testified that when she drove Coelho back to Pine Street after the murder, he told her, "They know about my tattoo, and it wasn’t covered up.”

Coelho was also caught by surprise when Mahaseth fought back, grabbing a chair and flinging it over the counter. Coelho responded with a single shot, Driscoll said.

Silvia also testified that after the murder, Coelho had admitted to being involved in the convenience store shooting and said the gun discharged accidently.

“He asked me to be his alibi,” testified Silvia.

During trial, prosecutors presented a police interview with Coelho, who attempted to use Silvia as his alibi, saying he was at her mother’s home staying in the basement on the night of the shooting.

DA: Victim was 'trying to achieve the American dream'

Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn III said unfortunately the circumstances of drugs and illegal guns "exist in our society."

"You heard the testimony that the defendant and the witnesses were using drugs. But in the end, this was a brutal crime committed by the defendant. He had previously robbed another convenience store," said Quinn. "These people were just trying to make a living."

Mahaseth had come overseas and brought his family, said Quinn.

"He was trying to achieve the American dream," said Quinn.

Fall River Police Chief Paul Gauvin said his Major Crimes Division detectives and State Police detectives were outstanding in handling this matter.

"I am certainly pleased with the effort and dedication of the whole team, with special commendation to MCD lead detectives Nicholas Custadio and Moses Pereira. Their unwavering commitment and pursuit of the perpetrator was exemplary," said Gauvin in an email.

"I am also appreciative of the firm and fair sentence. It is uplifting to see justice served, sending a powerful message that violent crime will not go unpunished in our city. This victory isn't just for law enforcement and the prosecution team, but most importantly, for the victim and his loved ones. It's beacon of hope and reassurance for our community," said Gauvin.

Coelho did not testify at his trial, and the defense did not present any witnesses.

His attorney, Sargent, declined to comment after the trial, "out of respect for the families."

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Fall River convenience store shooter found guilty of murder