Entwistle Due to Be Arraigned

Feb. 16, 2006 — -- Twenty-five days after leaving the country alone on a flight to London, Neil Entwistle has returned to the United States in handcuffs and shackles, this time escorted by U.S. marshals.

He faces murder charges in Massachusetts in the killings of his wife, Rachel Entwistle, and their 9-month-old daughter, Lillian Rose Entwistle, both of whom were shot with a .22-caliber gun that allegedly belonged to Rachel's stepfather.

Entwistle, 27, was turned over to police from Hopkinton, Mass., the suburban town where he had lived with his family. He met Wednesday night with Boston defense attorney Elliot M. Weinstein, who was appointed to represent him in the Massachusetts courts. Weinstein was assigned to the case by the Committee for Public Counsel Services, a state agency that pairs private lawyers with indigent defendants.

"We'll plead not guilty," Weinstein said. "From that moment forward, all of our efforts will be to see he receives the fairest of trials."

Smoking Gun?

In recently released court affidavits, Rachel's stepfather, Joseph Materrazzo, told police that he last had used the weapon, which was kept locked away in his Carver, Mass., home, on Jan. 21, the day after Rachel and Lillian were apparently killed.

Materrazzo said he had used his firearms, including the .22 caliber, for target shooting.

This detail has raised concern that forensics on the alleged murder weapon may be less than perfect.

"I think the issue of time of death is going to be important," said defense attorney Janice Bassil. "DNA, fingerprints, I think all of those things are going to be very heavily focused on in this case."

Failed Plan?

Police say the motive is Entwistle's desperate financial situation: He was tens of thousands of dollars in debt.

The Middlesex district attorney suggested the plot might have been part of a failed murder-suicide. Court documents reported Entwistle said he "grabbed a knife from the kitchen and considered killing himself, but then put it down because it would hurt too much."

"He seems to have acted in a very confused manner, and confusion is not necessarily proof of guilt," Bassil said.

Detailed Court Documents

In more than 200 pages of affidavits released earlier this week, investigators describe Entwistle as a secretive man with financial troubles that may have put a strain on his marriage. Investigators suggest that those troubles may have given him motive to kill his wife and daughter.

The documents also reveal that Entwistle may have perused Web sites that provide escort services.

"Whether or not he visited escort services … that is not necessarily a motive for murder," Bassil said. "I suspect that there are plenty of happily married men visiting escort sites."

Trip Back From England

Entwistle flew to his native England late last month before his wife and daughter were found dead in the couple's bed.

He was transferred into the custody of U.S. marshals at Gatwick Airport outside London on Wednesday morning.

He flew to Bangor, Maine, to pass customs, then flew to the Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford, Mass., where he arrived just before 5:30 p.m. Entwistle was handcuffed and wearing leg shackles when he was taken from the plane by state police. He was then taken directly to the Hopkinton Police Department, where he was processed and remains in jail.

There is no death penalty in Massachusetts. If convicted, Entwistle faces mandatory life in prison. The trial is unlikely to begin for a year.

Gitika Ahuja contributed to this report.