A Southern California man was convicted Monday of killing a family of four and burying their bodies in the desert, a case that puzzled investigators for years after the family suddenly vanished from their home in 2010. After a trial that spanned more than four months and depended largely on circumstantial
1 / 3Desert GravesFILE - In this Nov. 20, 2013, file photo, residents of Victorville, Calif., and surrounding communities place crosses near the graves where the McStay family was found in Victorville, Calif. A jury verdict will be read in the case of a Southern California man charged with killing a family of four and burying their bodies in the desert.
Prosecutors say Merritt killed the family with a sledgehammer at a time when he owed McStay money and was being cut out of the victim's business making and selling custom water fountains. After the McStay family disappeared, authorities found bowls of uneaten popcorn at their San Diego County home, which had no signs of forced entry, and their car parked at a strip mall near the Mexican border.
"It was blow, after blow, after blow to a child's skull," the Los Angeles Times reported prosecutor Britt Imes said during closing arguments.Authorities said they traced Merritt's cellphone to the area of the desert gravesites in the days after the family disappeared and to a call seeking to close McStay's online bookkeeping account.
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