JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - Missouri prison officials say a 65-year-old inmate serving a life sentence in the 1997 killing of his grandfather has died.
The Missouri Department of Corrections reports that Gerald Elam died Wednesday at the Jefferson City Correctional Center.
Elam was serving life sentences without the prospect of parole on convictions of first-degree murder, armed criminal action and second-degree arson.
Authorities say Elam fatally stabbed grandfather Minis Elam in the victim’s home before setting the home ablaze.
Neighbors saw Gerald Elam fleeing the scene, and after his arrest he confessed to the killing, claiming it was self-defense and that he believed his grandfather was the devil.
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