Soldier Charged in Killing of Channel 13 Engineer

A 22-year-old Burbank soldier who told authorities he intended only to rob his victim was charged Friday with the murder last week of Channel 13 news engineer Jeffrey Webreck of Glendale.

John Louis Rex, who turned himself in this week to military authorities at Ft. Irwin after being absent without leave since July 8, could face the death penalty if convicted of the charges filed by the district attorney’s office.

Rex allegedly told authorities that he had met the 44-year-old Webreck at Griffith Park, exchanged phone numbers with him and offered to meet him privately, intending to rob him. When Webreck made sexual advances, however, Rex shot him, court papers allege. Webreck, an Emmy-award-winning engineering manager at Channel 13, disappeared Sept. 3 after leaving work. His body was found four days later, partially buried in Angeles National Forest.