Prosecutor: Malvo says he and Muhammad 'were equals'
Pair acted as 'sniper team,' Virginia attorney says
From Mike Ahlers
CNN Washington Bureau
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Officers escort Lee Boyd Malvo after a court appearance.
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sniper suspect Lee Boyd Malvo has implicated his alleged accomplice, John Allen Muhammad, claiming they "were equals" and that either man "could call a particular shot on or off," according to Virginia prosecutors.
Malvo, 17, and Muhammad, 42, are accused of killing 13 people and wounding six others in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia. They are being tried first in Virginia, where both could face the death penalty.
The information about Malvo's confession is buried in a document filed Tuesday by Raymond F. Morrogh, the chief deputy of Virginia Commonwealth's Attorney Robert Horan.
Defense attorneys had sought information about any evidence that would show that another person was "more culpable, more dominant or more dangerous" than Malvo in the fatal shooting of FBI analyst Linda Franklin on October 14 outside a Home Depot store.
In response, Morrogh said that "from the evidence so far," Malvo acted in concert with Muhammad, with both operating as a "sniper team."
"One would be the spotter, while the other would do the shooting," Morrogh wrote. "They acted as a unit.
"Doubtless many friends and relatives of [Malvo and Muhammad] will have opinions as to who was more dominant or culpable. In fact, [Malvo] claimed both were equals and either could call a particular shot on or off," Morrogh wrote.
Morrogh also said Malvo refers to Muhammad "as his father, although there is no blood relation."
A hearing on numerous motions in the case is scheduled for Monday in Fairfax County, Virginia.
FBI analyst Linda Franklin was shot to death October 14 outside a Home Depot store in Falls Church, Virginia.
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Franklin, 47, was shot in the head as she loaded items into her car outside the hardware store in Falls Church, Virginia.
In January, a grand jury indicted Malvo, 17, on two counts of capital murder, one of which includes a terrorism charge, in Franklin's shooting.
Malvo could be sentenced to death if convicted of capital murder. However, prosecutors said they have not decided whether to seek the death penalty.
Muhammad is to stand trial in neighboring Prince William County, Virginia, in October for the shooting of Dean Harold Meyers at a gas station in Manassas on October 9.
