Former inmate convicted in prison pen pal double slaying

CLEVELAND – A suburban Cleveland man accused of fatally stabbing his prison pen pal and her friend weeks after being released has been convicted of aggravated murder and other charges in the potential death penalty case.

The Cuyahoga (ky-uh-HOH’-guh) County prosecutor says jurors on Thursday convicted 44-year-old Thomas Knuff of killing people who gave him somewhere to stay when he had no other options.

Authorities say Knuff killed 50-year-old Regina Capobianco and 65-year-old John Mann at a Parma Heights home in May 2017 and hid the bodies. They weren’t found for weeks.

Cleveland.com reports Knuff has said he killed Capobianco in self-defence when he found her stabbing Mann. Knuff’s lawyers say he covered it up because he feared being sent back to prison for a parole violation.

His sentencing begins July 22.

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Information from: cleveland.com, http://www.cleveland.com