4 inmates charged with killing prisoner in Victorville

Murder charges have been filed against four inmates accused of beating to death another man at a federal prison in San Bernardino County.

Authorities say an indictment unsealed Tuesday in Santa Ana charges the men with first-degree murder and conspiracy in the 2013 killing of a 38-year-old inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution in Victorville.

Prosecutors say the victim, called “J.S.” in the indictment, was attacked in the prison recreation yard. Authorities say the men kicked and beat him, continuing even after he’d stopped breathing.

Three of the men charged in his death were all serving time for drug charges. The fourth had been convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

If convicted of murder, all potentially face the death penalty.