Malvo: Muhammad planned bombing campaign after sniper shootings

ROCKVILLE, Md. — An emotional Lee Boyd Malvo testified Tuesday against his former partner in the 2002 sniper attacks and said John Allen Muhammad told him "we're going to terrorize these people."

Malvo said Muhammad had outlined a plan for six sniper shootings a day for 30 days several months before the spree that left 10 people dead and three wounded over a three-week span.

The spree was to be followed by a bombing campaign that would target schools, school buses and children's hospitals, Malvo said.

"I said 'Why?' He didn't give me an answer," Malvo said.

Both Muhammad, 45, and Malvo, now 21, already were convicted in Virginia for a sniper murder there. Muhammad received a death sentence while Malvo was given a life term.

Prosecutors in Maryland have said they are pursuing a second trial in case the Virginia conviction is overturned on appeal and to provide justice in Montgomery County, where six of the 10 killings occurred.

Malvo told the judge that he intends to plead guilty to murder charges against him in Montgomery County.

The last time the two came face-to-face was in October 2003, when Malvo was brought in at Muhammad's first trial. Malvo refused to testify, invoking his constitutional right against self-incrimination

On Tuesday, Malvo testified in detail about the first seven shootings. In each, he said Muhammad was the triggerman. Malvo described how he acted as a spotter and saw the victims felled after each shooting.

He paused and blinked hard briefly, though, while discussing the shooting of Premkumar Walekar after hearing the sobs of Walekar's widow from the courtroom gallery.

Malvo also described the difficulty the pair had in finding a clean shot that would not be seen by witnesses.

They tried to fire a shot near Howard University in Washington, D.C, on Oct. 3 — the day in which five people were shot and killed — but there were too many people and they ended up settling on a location in the District near the Maryland line, Malvo said.

The next day, they planned to fire six shots in the Fredericksburg, Va., area. But they couldn't find a good shot, Malvo said.

"We spent hours along Route 3 (near Fredericksburg) and couldn't find anything. There were too many witnesses," Malvo said.

They finally settled on taking a shot in the parking lot of a Michaels craft store, though the two debated the best place to take a shot.