The jury in the trial of Robert Telles found the former Clark County, Nevada, elected official guilty of murder in the death of investigative reporter Jeff German on Wednesday.

The jury began deliberating Monday and came to the verdict Wednesday. Several hours later, the jury sentenced Telles to life in prison, with the chance of being eligible for parole after 20 years.

Telles, 47, had pleaded not guilty to a charge of first-degree murder with a deadly weapon against a victim 60 or older in the 2022 death of German, who was found outside his home with multiple stab wounds. German was a longtime Las Vegas journalist who had written articles critical of Telles and the Clark County public administrator’s office.

Testimony from 28 prosecution witnesses and six defense witnesses, including Telles himself, concluded Friday. He testified that he was being “framed” by people involved in an alleged scheme, accusing office colleagues, real estate agents, business owners and police. He said it was retaliation for his crusading effort to root out corruption he saw in his office of about eight employees handling probate property cases.