SAN DIEGO -- A man has pleaded guilty to killing his pen pal, encasing the body in cement and living off the victim's savings and credit cards. Thomas Jeffrey Brooks faces up to life in prison after pleading guilty Thursday in San Diego to first-degree murder.
Brooks killed 80-year-old Edward Andrews in May 2008 after befriending him. Brooks and an accomplice then encased Andrews' body in a concrete orb that was the centerpiece of a rock garden in Brooks' landlord's backyard in San Diego.
Prosecutors say Brooks withdrew about $24,000 from the victim's accounts and made $108,000 in phony check deposits over eight months.
Prosecutors say Brooks and Andrews became pen pals while Brooks was in a Victorville prison. They say Brooks met the victim at his home in Hemet after he was released from prison.
