Army mechanic convicted of killing 3 in Fullerton

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — An Army mechanic who killed three people at a Southern California home has been convicted of murder.

Twenty-three-year-old Joshua Acosta was convicted Thursday. He faces life in prison without chance of parole.

Acosta confessed that he went to a Fullerton home in 2016 where he used a shotgun to kill 34-year-old Christopher Yost; his wife, 39-year-old Jennifer Yost, and their friend, 28-year-old Arthur Boucher.

The couple’s young daughters discovered the bodies. Acosta was later taken into custody at Fort Irwin.

Acosta told investigators he was trying to protect Christopher Yost’s 17-year-old stepdaughter, who testified at his trial that Yost had molested her.

The defense argued that the teen had lied to authorities about being molested and had instigated the killings. She testified under immunity.