Couple invited man from church to move in, then killed him, VA officials say

A couple invited a disabled man from church to live with him when he had “nowhere to go,” then they killed him, Virginia prosecutors said.

A jury has now convicted 45-year-old Kristie Marie Lynch of first-degree murder after her husband, 52-year-old James Christian Lynch, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 25 years in prison, according to the Office of the Norfolk Commonwealth’s Attorney.

Kristie Lynch’s defense attorney declined to comment on the case. McClatchy News reached out to her husband’s attorney for comment Sept. 17 but did not immediately receive a response.

The Lynches told police they met 45-year-old Jose Luis Moreno through church and let him come live with them in 2022 when he needed a place to stay, prosecutors said in a news release Sept. 16.

“Mr. Moreno had a disability that caused weakness in his ankles and required him to use a walker, and he contributed to the Lynches’ household finances with his Supplemental Security Disability Income,” prosecutors wrote.

But James Lynch said the couple “punished” Moreno for not helping out with household tasks and for speaking Spanish, according to the commonwealth’s attorney.

The husband said he beat Moreno several times with a frying pan in the days leading up to the man’s death but didn’t take him to a hospital for his injuries out of fear of being arrested, prosecutors said.

Then investigators said on Aug. 11, 2023, the Lynches asked to meet with their pastor and told him Moreno was dead in their apartment.

The pastor told them to call the police, then responding officers found Moreno dead at the bottom of the staircase, naked with cuts and bruises on his body, including his neck, according to prosecutors.

Investigators said the couple had beaten and strangled their roommate using various household items, such as a pan, a dog leash and a belt.

Kristie Lynch told investigators that the day Moreno died, she had told her husband Moreno sexually assaulted her, so she told her husband to “man up” and “go take care of your boy,” according to prosecutors.

The husband said when he attacked Moreno with a frying pan, the man fought back, investigators said.

“Mr. Lynch — who stands 6-foot-4 inches tall and weighed more than 300 pounds at the time — claimed that Mr. Moreno — who stood 5-foot-7 inches tall and weighed about 130 pounds — was possessed with a ‘demon’-like strength and would not be subdued, so Mr. Lynch said he grabbed a baseball bat and continued to beat Mr. Moreno with it,” prosecutors wrote.

The couple is then accused of strangling him. Authorities said the man likely died two days before the Lynches called 911.

The couple was indicted on first-degree murder charges, but James Lynch pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in May, authorities said.

Kristie Lynch opted to go to trial rather than accept a plea deal and was convicted of the original charge, according to prosecutors. Her sentencing is scheduled for January 2026.

“The word ‘shocking’ has been overused, but the suffering that the Lynches inflicted on Mr. Moreno — a disabled man they claimed to have been ‘helping’ and who had ‘nowhere to go’ — is truly shocking,” Commonwealth’s Attorney Ramin Fatehi said.

Norfolk is on Virginia’s southern coast in the Hampton Roads area.