Second Man Convicted In Slaying Of Tourist

RIVERSIDE, Calif. - A second suspect was convicted of first-degree murder in the shooting death of a German tourist, and, like the convicted triggerman, now faces life in prison without possibility of parole.

Khamchan Bret Ketsouvannasane, 20 - one of three suspects connected to the May 16, 1994, murder at a scenic highway viewpoint - was found guilty yesterday of robbing and murdering Gisela Pfleger, 62, and the attempted murder of her husband, Klaus Pfleger, during their vacation in Southern California.

While co-defendant Thongxay Nilakout, 18, was convicted Monday as the shooter, Ketsouvannasane was also found guilty of murder because complicity in a felony - robbery, in this case - that leads to murder exposes accomplices to murder charges.

The men were tried at the same time before two separate juries. A separate trial for the third defendant, Xou Yang, 20 - who allegedly provided the .380-caliber semiautomatic handgun, drove the getaway car and is believed by prosecutors to have been the mastermind behind the robbery - is expected to begin next week.

Defense attorney Sanford Perliss acknowledged to the jury that his client planned to break into cars in the San Jacinto Mountain area. But he contended that Ketsouvannasane "chickened out" of robbing the Pflegers at gunpoint.

But Klaus Pfleger identified Ketouvannasane in court as the man who first struggled with his wife as she was photographing spring flowers at a roadside vista.

The husband was shot twice in the face and once in the back by Nilakout, who then shot Gisela Pfleger twice in the head. Left for dead, Klaus Pfleger struggled to his car and drove for help.