Guilty plea in Grant Co. triple homicide

EPHRATA, Wash. (AP) — A 25-year-old man who pleaded guilty to three counts of second-degree murder for a 2009 shootin g in Mattawa faces more than 38 years in prison when he is sentenced Feb. 14 in in Ephrata.

The Columbia Basin Herald reports Grant County prosecutors lowered the charges from first-degree murder in a plea deal with J. Guadalupe Martinez-Lopez.

He said he shot the men in retaliation for a rape.

Grant County Sheriff’s detectives think Martinez-Lopez used the same gun to rob a store of beer and money before sitting down with his girlfriend and two others for dinner before his arrest.

Past coverage: Dec. 17, 2009: Man told police he killed revenge