Prison for 3 in Killing of US Couple in Caribbean

PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten (AP) – A judge in St. Maarten has convicted three men and issued prison sentences in the killing of a South Carolina couple who owned a home in the Caribbean country. Lead defendant Meyshane Johnson was found guilty of six charges, including two counts of murder in the deaths Michael and Thelma King of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. Johnson received a life sentence. Two other defendants were convicted of lesser charges and each received more than 20 years. Friends and relatives of the Kings wept as the verdicts were read out. Gasps were heard from the audience when Johnson turned and smiled to the gallery at one point. Johnson’s lawyer said she will appeal. He had said he did not remember tying up the couple and killing them in their beachfront condominium.