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MOSCOW, Idaho (AP) — A northern Idaho man convicted of killing his estranged wife and covering up her death faces up to life in prison when he is sentenced in a few months.
Charles Capone, 53, showed little reaction Wednesday when a 2nd District Court jury found him guilty of first-degree murder.
The jury deliberated a day and a half before determining Capone of Moscow killed 40-year-old Rachael Anderson from Clarkston, Washington, in April 2010. The body of the mother of four hasn't been found.
"A lot of stress is gone," Anderson's mother, Carolyn K. Reilly, told the Lewiston Tribune (http://bit.ly/XKWOva). "We are so grateful to the jury, the prosecutors, the detectives and everyone who worked on this case. I thought they really did a wonderful job."
"There are no words for what I'm feeling," said Ashley Colbert, one of Anderson's two adult daughters. "I'm very relieved."
Capone also was convicted of failure to notify officials of a death and conspiring to commit failure to notify officials of a death.
Senior Judge Carl B. Kerrick ordered a presentence investigation, and said a sentencing date would be set in the near future.
Co-defendant David C. Stone, as part of a deal with prosecutors, last week testified he witnessed Capone kill Anderson and then helped dump the body in the Snake River. Stone is facing a maximum of seven years in prison for helping cover up the killing.
"This has probably been the most challenging case my office has ever handled," said Latah County Prosecutor William Thompson Jr. "The age of the case and no body presented huge obstacles to overcome. Everyone rose to the occasion, and I couldn't be more proud."
Authorities in the past year made numerous searches of the Snake River where they believe Capone and Stone disposed of Anderson's body, but didn't find anything.
"Even though this doesn't bring Rachael back to her family, it's a relief Charles Capone is finally being held responsible for what he did to her," said Jackie Nichols, a detective in Asotin County in Washington State who first responded to the missing person report.
Nichols says she planned to continue searching for Anderson's body.
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Information from: Lewiston Tribune, http://www.lmtribune.com
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