WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — A Robins Air Force Base airman has been found not guilty of felony murder and aggravated arson in the death of a friend as part of what authorities said was an insurance fraud scheme.
The Telegraph reports that a military jury on Thursday also found 28-year-old Charles Wilson III not guilty of conspiracy and other charges.
Wilson, a support team member with the 461st Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, was accused of conspiring with 36-year-old Infini Hardy and 27-year-old Demetrius Hardy to burn down his rented Warner Robins home on Oct. 2, 2011, for $40,000 in insurance money.
Demetrius Hardy died several days later from injuries sustained from an explosion during the fire. Wilson's defense argued that Infini Hardy only implicated Wilson two years after the fire when she faced incarceration. Her trial on arson and burglary charges is pending.
Wilson will have two other courts martial in coming weeks. He stands additional charges on assault and subsequent threats against a retired female technical sergeant in 2012; and the premeditated murder of his fiancée, Tameda Ferguson, and her unborn child in 2013, for which he could face the death penalty if convicted, according to a release from Robins.
The second court-martial will begin June 6.
Air Force Times staff reporter Oriana Pawlyk contributed to this story.
