An Apollo, Pennsylvania man was convicted of first-degree murder by a Westmoreland County jury on Thursday for the execution-style killing of his wife, Kelly Steele. Alfred Keith Steele, 44, was found guilty after more than four hours of deliberation for the May 14, 2022, shooting inside a U-Haul storage facility in Lower Burrell.

The prosecution argued that the fatal shooting was the culmination of years of fighting and an ongoing drug addiction that Alfred Steele claimed was responsible for marital problems. However, the victim’s children, Emily and Ean Steele, expressed relief at the conviction, saying that they finally achieved justice for their mother.

During the four-day trial, the prosecution presented evidence that Alfred Steele fired one shot into the back of his wife’s head with a damaged 9mm semiautomatic handgun, holding it together with wire. He confessed to police about an hour after the shooting that he was responsible for her death, claiming that it was the result of an argument over unconfirmed suspicions of infidelity.

Despite Alfred Steele’s assertion that he did not intend to kill his wife, his daughter and grandmother testified that Kelly Steele did not have an affair. The conviction means a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for Alfred Steele, with a formal sentencing to take place in about three months.

The defense indicated that they plan to appeal the conviction, alleging that the case should have ended in a mistrial after two alternate jurors were dismissed before the start of court. The judge, however, was satisfied that the remaining jurors were untainted and capable of rendering a fair verdict.

In his defense, Alfred Steele described years of marital problems exacerbated by ongoing drug addiction issues and paranoia over unconfirmed suspicions of infidelity. He claimed that the fatal shooting was a result of a heated argument at the storage locker, where he intended to retrieve clothes and disclose a burgeoning relationship with another woman. The prosecution, on the other hand, argued that the shooting constituted an execution and was the only viable verdict.

The conviction of Alfred Steele for first-degree murder comes as a relief to the family of the victim, who have been seeking justice for the killing of their mother. The sentencing of Alfred Steele to life in prison without parole is a result of the jury’s determination of his culpability in the execution-style slaying of Kelly Steele.