Springfield man convicted of fatally stabbing 2 people

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — A 28-year-old man has been convicted of fatally stabbing a rural southwest Missouri couple four years ago during a botched burglary.

The Springfield News-Leader reports that jurors found Jose Huckleberry of Springfield guilty on Friday of two counts of second-degree murder in the April 2011 deaths of Don and Helen Willingham. Both were 79 when they were killed in their home near Springfield.

Huckleberry’s attorney, Dewayne Perry, argued that Huckleberry was in bed during the killings.

The prosecution’s main evidence was a 2012 law enforcement interview. It shows Huckleberry confessing to killing the couple after initially denying any involvement. He later told detectives he killed Don Willingham and one of his associates killed Helen Willingham.

Perry says Huckleberry was persuaded to confess to a crime he didn’t commit.