Newburgh Man Admits Role In Drug Death Of Woman

NEWBURGH, NY — A Newburgh man has admitted his role in the death of a missing city of Newburgh woman.

Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler announced that on Thursday, Matthew Mercado, 39, of Newburgh pleaded guilty in Orange County Court to second-degree manslaughter, second-degree burglary and tampering with physical evidence.

Those charges were in connection with the death of Jessica Lopez, 36, of the city of Newburgh. She was last seen Nov. 3, 2019, at the Windsor Motel in the town of New Windsor.

Prosecutors said, at the time Mercado pleaded guilty to the manslaughter charge, he admitted that around 5 a.m. Nov. 3, 2019, he and Lopez were alone in Room 33 of the motel. That is when he caused her death by giving her a variety of illegal narcotics and drugs.

Those drugs cause Lopez to have a severe adverse reaction, police said, and when he saw what was happening to her, he failed to get medical help for her, insisting she was kept hidden inside the motel room where she died, according to authorities.

Mercado admitted that had Lopez received prompt medical care she could have survived and that his actions cause her death.

The tampering with physical evidence charge reflects the fact that Mercado hid Lopez's body. He said he removed her body from the motel room around 4:45 p.m. Nov. 3, 2019, and placed her in the trunk of her car.

As part of the plea agreement, Mercado said he would provide accurate information as to where he hid Lopez's body and would comply with all lawful requests from law enforcement to aid in the recovery of Lopez's remains.

Hoovler said Mercado's plea agreement recommends he be sentenced to a total of 17 to 19 years in state prison when he is sentenced Nov. 15.

He said he hoped the plea agreement provides some measure of closure to Lopez's grieving family, friends and former students.

"This defendant's actions in giving her the illegal drugs, which he admits killed her, and preventing her from receiving medical care, which likely would have saved her," Hoovler said, "was made even more egregious by his cruel action in hiding her body from her family and the police."

Lopez formerly taught at Newburgh Free Academy and worked at a Newburgh health clinic until she quit to take care of an ill parent.