Ex-Fort Bragg soldier who killed teen commits suicide in prison
POLKTON, N.C. -- A former soldier who pleaded guilty two years ago to killing a teenager has killed himself in his North Carolina prison cell.
Department of Public Safety spokesman Keith Acree said in a news release that 25-year-old Christopher Blackett was found dead Sunday afternoon at the Lanesboro Correctional Institution in Anson County.
Blackett pleaded guilty in August to second-degree murder in the killing of his 17-year-old neighbor Vincent Carlisle II in 2011. He was sentenced to at least 26 years in prison.
Prosecutors say Blackett thought Carlisle had broken into his home and killed him in revenge by forcing him into the woods and shooting him. The incident occurred near Blackett’s Fort Bragg home.
Blackett’s roommate Sebastian Gamez is still awaiting trial in the killing.