Trial for murder of retired firefighter cut short after suspect admits guilt

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- A trial for the murder of a retired Colorado Springs firefighter has been cut short after the suspect admitted he's guilty. 

The Gazette reports Gustavo Torres-Gonzalez pleaded guilty to first-degree murder Thursday. Torres-Gonzalez has agreed to serve the mandatory sentence of life without parole by doing so.

His admission had come on the day prosecutors expected to rest their case. Jury deliberations could have begun Friday.

Authorities say Torres-Gonzalez insisted the plea have one condition. He wants El Paso County sheriff's investigators to investigate an assault the defendant said he suffered in January 2016. Investigators agreed. 

59-year-old Daryl B. Ritz, the retired firefighter, was killed in May 2016.

"We are relieved with the overall outcome. We're relieved for the fact that no one should ever have to fear this guy again, and that's important to us," Brian Ritz, Ritz's brother, told CBS affiliate KKTV.