Eugene Burns, charged with the murder of his supposed best friend, Onyekachi Osuchukwu III, was found guilty by a jury on Wednesday. He faces a potential sentence of life in prison.
Osuchukwu was found by police in the 2900 block of 2nd Street, SE in November of 2015. He had succumbed to gunshot wounds by the time emergency workers arrived.
According to the prosecution, Osuchukwu’s death was premeditated. Following a drug-related dispute, Burns began to plot the murder of his friend, inviting him into D.C. to do so. On November 14, the day before police found Osuchukwu, the victim was lured into Burns’ mother’s house, where Burns shot and killed him. After fleeing the scene, Burns returned the next day with relatives to “discover” Osuchukwu dead.
After seeing all the evidence and hearing a testimony from Burns himself, who changed his original story to self-defense, the jury sided with the prosecution.
Judge Hiram E. Puig-Lugo has scheduled the sentencing to take place on September 29, 2017.
