Fall River Man Sentenced for Voluntary Manslaughter of Girlfriend

FALL RIVER — A Fall River man pleaded guilty to a charge of voluntary manslaughter in connection to the 2017 killing of his girlfriend, and was immediately sentenced to state prison.

The Bristol County District’s Office said in a release that Scott Rego, 30, pleaded guilty on Friday, April 30, to the voluntary manslaughter charge in connection to the death of his longtime girlfriend, Kristina Reis, 36. As a result, Judge Renee Dupuis sentenced him to serve eight and a half to 12 and a half years in state prison.

On May 22, 2017, at approximately 9:22 p.m., Rego called 911 to report that he and his girlfriend had stabbed each other in their apartment at 17 Linden Street in Fall River. According to the D.A.’s Office, Rego said the two had a “major fight” and that he stabbed Reis after she had first stabbed him in the chest.

Get our free mobile app

Reis was found by first responders with life-threatening wounds and was pronounced dead at Charlton Memorial Hospital a short time later. The state medical examiner’s office determined she died as a result of stab wounds to the area around her neck and chin.

Rego was discovered in the couple’s third-floor apartment suffering from a stab wound to the upper left side of his chest. He told police he and Reis had been using cocaine all night, and police also located a crack pipe at the scene. Rego was taken to St. Anne’s Hospital and later Rhode Island Hospital, where it was determined Rego’s wound had penetrated his lung.

The D.A.’s Office said there was a history of past violence between the couple, with Reis previously pleading guilty to an assault and battery charge against Rego involving a knife. At the time of the fatal stabbing, Rego was on probation for a domestic violence case with Reis as the victim.

"This was a very sad and tragic ending to a tumultuous relationship. My heart goes out to the victim and her family," District Attorney Thomas Quinn said.