Guilty Verdict In Murder Of Stockton Soldier In Iraq

FORT STEWART, Ga. (AP) — A soldier has been found guilty by a court martial in the 2010 slayings of two of his Army roommates in Iraq.

A military jury returned its verdict in the murder trial of Army Spc. Neftaly Platero of Kingwood, Texas, after deliberating for 90 minutes Tuesday. He was found guilty of two counts of premeditated murder and one count of attempted premeditated murder.

Prosecutors say Platero shot and killed Pfc. Gebrah Noonan of Watertown, Conn., and Spc. John Carrillo Jr. of Stockton hours after he complained about their room being messy.

A third soldier, Spc. Jeffrey Shonk, survived being shot in the head but told jurors he couldn't remember who attacked him.

Platero's attorneys said their client is innocent and that Army investigators ignored forensic evidence that seemed to clear him as the shooter.

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.)