Sniper's apprentice expected to testify against former mentor

Lee Boyd Malvo is expected to take the stand in Rockville, Maryland, on Monday to testify against John Allen Muhammad, his former mentor and alleged accomplice in the October 2002 Washington area sniper shootings trial.

In return for that testimony, Malvo is expected to plead guilty to the six sniper murders that occurred in Maryland and receive a sentence of life in prison, a person familiar with the case said.

Malvo still has not officially reached a deal, this person said, but will nevertheless testify on Monday.

Muhammad, 45, is on trial for the six Maryland killings.

He has already been convicted of one sniper shooting in Virginia and sentenced to death. Malvo, who was once so close to Muhammad that he called his older, unrelated accomplice “Dad,” is serving a life sentence for another Virginia sniper killing.

The pair is also suspected of earlier shootings in Maryland, Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana and Washington state.