70-Year-Old Wareham Man Killed Out Of 'Jealousy,' Prosecutors Say
WAREHAM (CBS) -- A 70-year-old Wareham man was killed out of "jealousy" by another man who had known the victim for years, prosecutors say.
John Wittey, 70, of Berkley, has been charged with murdering 70-year-old John Williams, and he answered to the charge in Wareham District Court on Friday.
With Williams' family at the court proceeding, a judge ordered Wittey held without bail.
Prosecutors say Wittey's motive was a love affair.
"I think this is a complete shock and probably one of the last things you think would happen to a family like this," says Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz.
Williams' was found shot to death Tuesday morning at his east Wareham home. Police quickly focused their investigation on Wittey after learning of the alleged love triangle.
According to Williams' kids, the radio and airplane enthusiast had a longtime affair with Wittey's live-in girlfriend, who passed away last month after battling cancer.
Police say Wittey learned of the relationship through a love letter he discovered this week while going through her belongings.
"This act is not random, and we believe it was done by (Wittey) and it was done because of jealousy," Cruz says.
Police discovered that the GPS in Wittey's car showed him on Williams' street multiple times Monday night. And then, they linked him through a batch of beer in Wittey's house and at the crime scene, police say.
"We're of the belief that the defendant was very disturbed by that and as a result of that did this activity last Monday evening during the snowstorm," Cruz says.
Wittey is expected to return to court on March 14.
