Death Penalty Sought In Murder Of FederalWitness

KANSAS CITY - (08/04/05) -- A federal jury convicted a manTuesday of arranging the murder of a former roommate who wasexpected to be a witness against him in a Nebraska credit unionrobbery case and could be sentenced to death in the penalty phaseof the trial. Xavier Lightfoot was also found guilty of conspiracyto murder a federal witness and of aiding and abetting the murder,as well as conspiracy to rob to Educators FCU in Omaha in 1997.John Wayne Hogsett was killed in June 1998 at the Kansas City homewhere he lived with Lightfoot, who was then in prison awaitingtrial. Hogsett, who lives as a woman under the name Jovan Ross, washelping the FBI's investigation of the credit union hold-up andseveral other Midwest robberies. Among the witnesses againstLightfoot was Cornelius Peoples, who hired the killers. Peoplespleaded guilty last year and agreed to testify against Lightfoot,in exchange for a sentence of 15-to-25-years. Lightfoot was alsoimplicated in the killing of two other witnesses involved in theinvestigation.