(WAAYTV) Jury has found a Mississippi man guilty of killing a former mayoral candidate with ties to Huntsville.

ABC affiliate WATN reports Lawrence Reed was convicted of murdering Marco McMillian, 34, a former Alabama A&M University executive assistant. According to investigators, Reed admitted he choked McMillian to death in February 2013. McMillian’s body was found partially burned near a levee on the Mississippi River.

McMillian had served as executive assistant to former Alabama A&M President Robert Jennings. Jennings was fired in 2008 when school trustees determined McMillian wasn’t qualified for the position and had been given paid leave while out of town working on his master’s degree. Read Full via WAVVYTV