BOSTON, Dec. 18, 2012—The man who beat and strangled 56-year-old Frederick Allen in his Chelsea apartment two years ago was convicted of first-degree murder late today, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.

After four days of testimony and about half a day of deliberations, a Suffolk Superior Court jury found MARIO CRUZADO (D.O.B. 7/10/73) guilty in Allen’s brutal death inside the victim’s Bellingham Street apartment on or about Nov. 24, 2010.

The verdict carries an automatic life sentence, which is expected to be imposed tomorrow.

Assistant District Attorney Holly Broadbent proved that Allen’s romantic partner encountered Cruzado on the street on Nov. 24 and, knowing him but not having seen him in a long time, invited him back to Allen’s home. At the time, Cruzado was living on the street. Once at Allen’s apartment, they drank and did drugs until Allen’s partner walked Cruzado back to Bellingham Square.

Allen’s boyfriend returned to the apartment, where the two argued about Allen’s cell phone, which had gone missing and which Allen accused him of stealing. That prompted his boyfriend to leave.

Two days later, Allen’s home health aide came for a regularly scheduled visit. She received no answer, so she contacted the landlady. The landlady opened Allen’s apartment door and they found him dead amid the chaos of a violent struggle.

In December 2010, Chelsea Police detectives and State Police assigned to Conley’s office learned of a cell phone conversation in which Cruzado admitted to a witness that he had been in a Chelsea apartment a few weeks earlier. Cruzado said he had put the resident of that apartment in a choke hold and left him unconscious. Unbeknownst to Cruzado, a witness overheard his end of the conversation and notified authorities. Investigators also learned that a series of calls made on Nov. 24 from Allen’s home phone were to a friend of Cruzado whom Allen did not know.

In interviews with police, Cruzado admitted meeting Allen’s boyfriend on the street the day of the incident but denied ever being present in Allen’s apartment.

Timothy Munzert was the DA’s assigned victim-witness advocate on the case. Cruzado was represented by attorney Matthew Feinberg. Judge Linda Giles will sentence Cruzado tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. in courtroom 806.

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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.