Robert Telles, a 47-year-old former Las Vegas-area Democratic politician, has been found guilty of first-degree murder in the slaying of investigative journalist Jeff German.
The jury, comprised of seven women and five men, reached their verdict after approximately ten hours of deliberation following a two-week trial.
Telles, who served as Clark County Public Administrator, was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 20 years for the September 2022 killing of German, a 69-year-old veteran reporter for the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
German had written a series of articles critical of Telles, exposing allegations of an inappropriate romantic relationship with a female coworker and a toxic workplace environment.
Prosecutors argued that Telles murdered German to prevent further damaging reports.
The day before the murder, Telles learned that Clark County officials were about to provide German with email and text messages between Telles and the woman in question, potentially fueling another story.
Key evidence in the case included DNA believed to be from Telles found beneath German’s fingernails, surveillance footage of a car matching Telles’ near the crime scene, and cut-up pieces of a straw hat and shoes found at Telles’ house resembling those worn by the person seen on video outside German’s home.
Prosecutors also presented hundreds of photos of German’s home and neighborhood found on Telles’ devices, along with internet searches for German’s personal information.
A crucial piece of evidence was a text message from Telles’ wife asking “Where are you?” at the time of the murder, which was allegedly deleted from his phone but recovered via his wife’s Apple Watch.
Throughout the trial, Telles maintained his innocence, claiming he was being framed for fighting corruption. His defense attorney argued that the prosecution’s case did not meet the standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
The conviction of Telles sends a strong message about the protection of press freedom and the consequences of crimes against journalists.
German was the only journalist killed in the U.S. in 2022, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Telles, who lost his primary election for a second term after German’s stories were published, has been stripped of his legal license following his arrest.