A former Nevada politician was found guilty Wednesday of murdering an investigative reporter who wrote critical articles about his time in office.
Robert Telles, 47, has been in prison since 2022 for the stabbing death of Las Vegas Review-Journal reporter Jeff German.
At the trial, prosecutors presented the jury with DNA evidence found under Mr. German’s fingernails that they said belonged to Telles, who has pleaded not guilty.
However, the 12-member jury returned a guilty verdict on Wednesday after two days of deliberations.
Telles, who was elected Clark County Public Administrator in 2018, took the stand during the trial and declared his innocence.
He now faces a possible life sentence following the jury’s verdict.
The 12 jurors deliberated for four hours Monday and about six hours Tuesday before the panel reached its conclusion.
The trial had lasted more than two weeks before closing arguments began Monday.
In September 2022, 69-year-old German was found stabbed seven times in the neck and torso outside his home in Nevada.
The veteran journalist has spent more than four decades covering the city and corruption.
He wrote several articles about Telles, accusing Telles of hostile behavior in his Las Vegas office and of having an affair with a subordinate.
Mr. Germany also published an article about Thales at the time of his death.
