Witness in Mattapan slayings says he withheld information from police at the outset

By Maria Cramer and Martin Finucane, Globe Staff

The man who was shot and wounded when four other people were murdered in Mattapan in 2010 testified today that he initially withheld information from police investigating the murder.

The testimony elicited from Marcus Hurd by a defense attorney appeared to be a potential blow to the credibility of a crucial witness. The prosecution had hoped Hurd would be able to offer stunning new evidence at a retrial — identifying the man who had shot him, which Hurd had not done during the first trial.

“Some of the questions [police] asked I told them the truth. Others I would say whatever came to my mind just because I was aggravated,” Hurd said today at a hearing under questioning by attorney John Amabile.

Hurd said he initially told police that both men involved in the attack had masks on so police would not bother him.

“I told them they had masks on so they would leave me alone,” he said.

Asked why he initially withheld information, Hurd said, “Why? Because I was raised wrong.” He said he didn’t want to be seen as a “rat or a snitch.”

Hurd also said today he had lied to a grand jury about not seeing the attackers’ faces.

“I’m willing to accept any consequences for lying. But as a man, I think it’s important I come forward and be truthful,” he said.

A Suffolk Superior Court judge is holding the hearing to determine whether to allow the new testimony in the retrial.

Hurd’s new testimony could be damning, but the fact that his testimony has changed could be picked apart by defense attorneys at the retrial.

On March 7, Hurd testified in the murder trial of Dwayne Moore, 35, and Edward Washington, 33, that he could not see the face of the man who shot him in the head, rendering him a quadriplegic. But later that day, he told a victim witness advocate he realized that Moore generally resembled the shooter. In July, he also told Boston police detectives he recognized the man who had shot him.

A jury acquitted Washington but couldn’t reach a verdict on Moore. He faces a new trial on Oct. 11 on four counts of first-degree murder.

Simba Martin, 21; his girlfriend, Eyanna Flonory; her 2-year-old son, Amanihotep Smith; and Levaughn Washum-Garrison, Martin’s friend, who was sleeping on the couch that night; were killed in the attack on Sept. 28, 2010, which shocked the city.