A jury has convicted a Houston-area teenager of capital murder for a girl's slaying that prosecutors said was part of a satanic ritual.
Jurors found 18-year-old Jose E. Reyes guilty on Thursday in the February death of 15-year-old Corriann Cervantes in a vacant apartment southeast of Houston.
Reyes will receive an automatic life sentence.
The Houston Chronicle reports that during closing arguments, prosecutor Martina Longoria told jurors Reyes committed "so many horrible, heinous and inhumane things."
Reyes' attorneys told said their client might be guilty of murder, but not capital murder.
The trial began Monday. Jurors saw graphic photos of injuries, including an upside down cross carved on Cervantes' stomach.
The case against another teen accused in the killing is pending.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.