Fall River Man Indicted for Murder in Stabbing of Gary Werra

A 23-year-old Fall River man has been indicted for murder in connection with the fatal Christmas Eve stabbing of Gary Werra, 39, a Fall River man whose body was found wrapped in plastic behind the Gold Medal Bakery on Atlantic Avenue.

Jose Amador-Ayala, who allegedly killed Werra, reportedly the ex-boyfriend of a woman he was dating, was indicted Thursday by a Bristol County grand jury. He has been held without bail following his Dec. 24 arrest. The indictment moves the case from Fall River District Court to Bristol Superior Court.

Amador-Ayala and Werra were fixing a boiler at the girlfriend's Angell Street home when the two men argued about why Werra still lived at that address, according to a police report by Detective Derek Beaulieu filed with court documents and viewed by the Fall River Herald News.

Amador-Ayala allegedly told police he “snapped,” grabbed a nearby knife, and stabbed Werra repeatedly. The suspect allegedly hid the knife behind a washing machine, called his sister for a ride, and wrapped Werra’s body in trash bags and duct tape.

The sister allegedly told police she saw Amador-Ayala emerge from the basement “dirty and frantic.” She said she observed her brother as he tried to place a laundry bag over an object wrapped in plastic, and she realized it was a body when a hand tumbled out, the police report states.

The sister said Amador-Ayala put Werra’s body in the trunk of a car and ordered her to drive. She told police she was in a state of shock and fear as her brother directed her to Atlantic Boulevard. She said she stayed in the car while Amador-Ayala hauled the body into the woods behind the Gold Medal Bakery. After he dumped the body, Amador-Ayala allegedly told his sister to bring him home so he could clean up.

The sister told police she dropped her brother off at his County Street apartment. She then drove to her boyfriend's house, and her boyfriend's grandmother called police.

Officers found Werra’s body about 5:30 p.m. on that day underneath an old mattress in a remote area behind the bakery. Police arrested Amador-Ayala at gunpoint outside the Angell Street residence where the stabbing occurred.

Police reports said Amador-Ayala was found with two bloody knives, that blood was found in the trunk of the car, that blood was found in the basement where Amador-Ayala and Werra had been repairing the boiler, and that the suspect's bloody clothes were retrieved from Amador-Ayala’s mother’s home, according to the police reports filed with court documents.

The suspect's sister told police her brother had told her "he had killed Gary and that he was happy about it" while the two were in the car, according to the court documents.

Amador-Ayala’s Superior Court arraignment is scheduled for March 13.