Oregon man convicted of Arizona murder of mine claim partner

PRESCOTT, Ariz. (AP) — Arizona jurors have convicted an Oregon man of second-degree murder and other charges stemming from the disappearance of a mining claim partner whose body was found buried in the desert a decade later.

A Yavapai County Superior Court jury in Prescott on Thursday convicted Anthony James Richards, 59, of Terrbonne, of second-degree murder in the killing of Larry Powers, the County Attorney’s Office said Friday.

Richards also was convicted of trafficking in stolen property, theft of a credit card, forgery, and 19 counts of taking the identity of another, the office said.

Richards faces at least 16 years in prison when he is sentenced May 16, the office said.

Richards and Powers were partners in a mining claim outside of Bagdad, Arizona, in a sparsely populated area of west-central Arizona.

A family member reported Powers missing in June 2007 after he and Richards were last seen together buying mining gear that April.

Powers’ disappearance remained unsolved until a 2016 cold-case investigation resulted in the discovery of Powers’ buried remains near a campsite used by the two men.

Richards was extradited from Oregon to face charges in the Arizona case.