Donatila O'Mahony convicted of murdering longtime friend, forging his signature in his will

A Central Islip woman was convicted Tuesday of murdering her longtime friend and forging his will to inherit his two Long Island houses.

The jury of seven women and five men sitting in Suffolk County Court found Donatila O’Mahony, 42, guilty of second-degree murder in the March 2020 shooting death of Lee Pedersen in Aquebogue. She was also convicted of second-degree possession of a forged instrument and second-degree attempted grand larceny. 

“The motive for this murder was greed, pure and simple,” Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said in a statement. “O’Mahony befriended the victim and then deliberately set out to steal his estate. The jury has found this defendant guilty and hopefully the victim’s loved ones will now have a small measure of justice knowing his killer will be held responsible for her actions.”

O’Mahony faces 25 years to life in prison on the murder charge when she is sentenced before state Supreme Court Justice Timothy Mazzei on Feb. 28.

The guilty verdict, delivered shortly after noon Tuesday following eight hours of jury deliberation over two days, brought to a close a nearly three-year case that began when Pedersen’s body was found inside his home, a single gunshot wound to the back of his head. The case hit a bump when a mistrial was declared following the conclusion of testimony in an initial trial in October.

During two weeks of testimony that concluded Friday, O’Mahony was described as a young widow with a gift for manipulation. She had inherited $1.5 million when her first husband died unexpectedly in 2017 but was in need of cash at the time of the murder, Assistant District Attorney Frank Schroeder told the jury.

The evidence at trial established that the body of Pedersen, 69, was discovered in his Aquebogue home on March 8, 2020. Several items, including Pedersen’s phone and cash, were missing from the home, prosecutors said.

Investigators used cellphone records and surveillance video along with witness interviews to build the case against O’Mahony, who in 2019 asked a friend to purchase two handguns for her, witnesses testified at trial. Prosecutors and witnesses said O’Mahony had a sometimes sexual relationship with both older men and would manipulate them to do things for her. She borrowed the other man’s car on the night of the murder and he later scattered parts from the gun used in the killing in dumpsters around his New Jersey neighborhood, according to trial testimony. The other man, George Woodworth, 73, of Paterson, New Jersey, is expected to receive a reduced sentence for charges related to the gun in exchange for his testimony. 

Investigators found Pedersen, who had no close living relatives, and O’Mahony’s DNA on a bag with a spent shell casing and bullets found inside Woodworth’s home, according to evidence presented at trial.

Detectives questioned O’Mahony soon after Pedersen’s body was discovered. She later made several calls to a detective asking if investigators ever found Pedersen’s last will and testament that left her his primary house in Lynbrook, according to testimony.

While police had found a will in a location O’Mahony provided, they did not share that information with her, and she later forged a new will leaving her with both of his houses, prosecutors and witnesses said at trial. Two witnesses testified that they fraudulently signed the will.

Defense attorney Ira Weissman conceded at trial that O’Mahony produced the forged will, but said she was not responsible for Pedersen’s death. While he said he was disappointed in the outcome of the case, he praised the jury for their patience.

“You gotta appreciate a jury that takes the time to consider the evidence,” Weissman said.

O’Mahony was arrested at Kennedy Airport on forgery and grand larceny charges in December 2020. She was indicted on a charge of murder the following March, almost one year to the day of Pedersen’s death. At the time of her arrest, O’Mahony had one-way plane tickets to her native El Salvador for her and her 5-year-old daughter.

Jim and Lorraine Roth of Lynbrook sat through much of both trials to represent their neighbor, whom they described as beloved on their close-knit street.

“We’re relieved. We’re glad,” Lorraine Roth said of the guilty verdict.

By Grant Parpan

grant.parpan@newsday.com@GrantParpan

Grant Parpan covers Suffolk County courts and federal courts for Newsday. A Long Island native, he joined Newsday in 2022.