BOSTON, Mass.- A man convicted of drugging, raping and strangling his then-girlfriend was sentenced to up to 20 years in state prison, while also facing separate charges tied to the death of 38-year-old Alenny Matos, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.
A jury on Friday found 47-year-old Rinnyers Pena guilty of one count of drugging for sexual intercourse, one count of strangulation, two counts of rape and two counts of photographing an unsuspecting nude person.
Judge James Lang sentenced Pena on May 18 to 17 to 20 years in state prison, followed by five years of probation. The probation conditions include GPS monitoring and sex offender registration requirements.
Pena also faces a separate criminal case connected to Matos’ death. Prosecutors charged him with one count of disinterring a body after Matos’ remains were discovered inside a trash bag near Enneking Parkway in Hyde Park on May 9, 2020.
Authorities said the investigation in the rape case began during a missing persons investigation, when the Boston Police Department reviewed Pena’s cellphone. Investigators identified photographs taken Feb. 14, 2020, at a Norton Street address in Dorchester showing Pena with a 21-year-old woman who appeared unclothed and unresponsive or incapacitated on his bed.
Additional photographs allegedly showed Pena engaging in sexual contact with the victim while she appeared incapacitated, prosecutors said.
Investigators also determined that while living at a rooming house on Notre Dame Street in Roxbury, Pena strangled the victim. Prosecutors said Pena provided the woman with opioids during their relationship with the intent to incapacitate her and facilitate sexual assault. The victim reportedly overdosed twice and required emergency medical intervention on both occasions.
Authorities said a second cellphone belonging to Pena contained photographs of another unidentified person who also appeared incapacitated and vulnerable. Investigators used BRIC ID Wanted flyers and facial recognition analysis in an effort to identify the individual, but the person has not been identified.
During Monday’s sentencing hearing, the victim described the relationship and its impact on her life.
“When I first met Mr. Pena, he was different,” the victim said in a statement read in court. “He led me to believe that he was loving and caring, and for a while he was. But as time went on, he became very isolating, and mean, angry, to a point where I felt like every single day was just dark.”
Lang praised the victim’s testimony following the sentencing.
“I have tremendous admiration for you, and I wish you healing and continued success,” the judge said.
Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden said the victim’s testimony was central to the conviction.
“This victim deserves enormous credit for recounting to jurors an extremely distressing and vulnerable event in her life,” Hayden said. “Her courageous testimony was instrumental in securing this conviction and sentence.”
Authorities said a missing persons investigation for Matos began Jan. 27, 2020. Due to advanced decomposition, investigators identified the body through dental records. Pena is expected to return to court in that case at a later date.
