Man Convicted of 2009 Killing in Gardena Motel Room

A former Compton resident was convicted Thursday of the April 2009 killing of a man whose body was found by a cleaning crew inside a Gardena motel room.

Jurors found Cameron Cole, 28, guilty of first-degree murder in the asphyxiation death of Joseph Shorty, 42, who was found April 20, 2009, inside a room at the Patio Inn, according to Deputy District Attorney Erika Jerez.

Cole -- who had moved to Nevada -- was arrested nearly five years later by California Highway Patrol officers near the California/Nevada border.

Cole is facing a minimum of 26 years to life in state prison, with sentencing set for April 22 at the Torrance courthouse.

--City News Service, photo via Shutterstock