Man, 21, found guilty in killing of four friends

Calvin Carnes Jr. faces a life sentence for each charge.

A Suffolk Superior Court jury found a 21-year-old Dorchester man guilty of four counts of first-degree murder yesterday in the brutal slaying of four young men in a Dorchester basement, which had been outfitted as a makeshift recording studio.

Calvin Carnes Jr. of Dorchester had gone to the Bourneside Street home on Dec. 13, 2005, to steal guns the young men used in recording a music video for their rap group called Graveside, but the robbery turned into what one law enforcement official described as a bloody scene. Each of the men was shot to death execution-style with few signs of a struggle. They were struck with a total of 15 bullets.

The victims were Edwin "E.J." Duncan, 21, who lived in the house where the killings occurred; Jason Bachiller, 21; Christopher "Fat Boy" Vieira, 19; and Jihad Chankhour, 22. The latter three all grew up in Wakefield. Duncan, Bachiller, and Vieira were blossoming hip-hop artists who were creating a buzz in the city, while Chankhour often stopped by to listen in on their sessions.

"We are extremely pleased with the verdicts," Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said in an interview outside the courtroom shortly after the jury rendered its decision. "This was one of the most horrific homicides in recent memory. . . . These young men were massacred by someone they trusted and confided in."

Carnes faces a life sentence for each murder count at a sentencing hearing tomorrow. The 12-member jury also found him guilty of armed robbery, larceny, and firearm charges, which carry additional sentences.

Carnes's lawyer, Shannon Frison of Boston, said she plans to file an appeal on several grounds, including evidence introduced at the trial and jury deliberations. The composition of the jury changed three times during the trial and deliberations, most recently on Tuesday, when Judge Margaret Hinkle approved replacing a fourth juror, causing deliberations to start over again.

"This was an awful murder of four young men . . . but Mr. Carnes didn't do it," said Frison, adding that her client's record previously included only a disorderly conduct charge as a teenager. "He's shocked and saddened by this."

Carnes testified that he was friends with three of the victims and was elsewhere at the time of the killings, selling marijuana. However, a friend of Carnes's, 21-year-old Robert Turner, said he watched the killings unfold. He pleaded guilty in April to accessory charges and was sentenced to a maximum of 13 years in prison.

The killings rippled through the city's hip-hop community and in Wakefield, where three of the victims lived. Duncan had forged a friendship with the three other victims while he attended Wakefield High School through the Metco program, which enables city students to go to suburban districts.

Although the group's music often focused on guns and violence, friends and relatives at the time said the young men were good people who shared the worst fate.

The killing rampage took place in the evening. The four victims had gathered there as they often did. At some point, Carnes and Turner entered the basement and took possession of one of the weapons the group had acquired for props in their video.

Three of the victims - Duncan, Bachiller, and Vieira - were each shot several times from behind with at least one bullet striking each of them in the head.

As he ran for the door, Chankhour was shot one time from behind, the bullet ripping through his heart.

Carnes and Turner fled with three firearms they stole: a loaded 9mm semiautomatic Glock firearm, which was used during the killings; a 12-gauge shotgun; and an AK-47 assault rifle. Both attempted to hide and sell the guns, prosecutors said.

The murder weapon was recovered in June 2006 after a search warrant was executed in Boston during the course of an unrelated federal investigation into firearms trafficking.

Both Conley and Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis said the convictions reflect top-notch team work in their agencies.

Davis said in a statement that he hoped the conviction "brings a sense of closure to the families and justice for the victims."

The victims' relatives, some of whom attended the nearly four-week trial, could not be reached for comment or declined to comment.

Globe correspondent Maddie Hanna contributed to this report.