A former Democratic official from Las Vegas was sentenced Wednesday to decades in prison for murdering a journalist. 

Robert Telles, 47, was facing a 20-year minimum sentence for killing Jeff German, a veteran reporter with the Las Vegas Review-Journal. 

Democrat sentenced

German had exposed Telles' mismanagement of the Clark County Public Administrator’s office, and an affair Telles was having with a coworker. Telles was convicted in August for the murder, and the jury set a 20-year minimum sentence.

The judge Wednesday added eight years for German's age of 69 and the use of a deadly weapon.

“The judge couldn’t sentence him to any more time,” Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said. “She gave him the maximum.”

German was found dead outside of his home over Labor Day Weekend in 2022. Telles was arrested for the killing after he left a trail of evidence linking him to the crime scene.

Neighborhood security video showed a man in a distinctive straw hat and bright orange shirt entering German's yard, where he was found stabbed to death. Police found cut-up pieces of a large straw hat at Telles' home.

The murder weapon was never found, but Telles' DNA was discovered under German's fingernails.

No remorse

Telles lost his elected position after German, a veteran 44-year reporter, exposed an affair that led to bullying and a hostile workplace environment.

The relationship, staffers told German, had "harmed the office’s ability to deal with the public in overseeing the estates of those who have died."

During the trial, Telles testified in his own defense, admitting to the affair but maintaining his innocence of the killing. He claimed he was framed as part of a conspiracy involving his rivals and the police.

At the sentencing, Telles showed no remorse.

“I did not kill Mr. German and unfortunately the people who should be held responsible, who should be brought to justice, the chances of that happening now, right this minute, are slim to none,” he told the court.

Telles would be eligible for parole at 73 years of age.

"We lost a brother, we lost an uncle, a friend, a leader. We are still in shock and it’s been two years. It’s going to take a long time to recover from this," German's brother Jay told the courtroom prior to Telles' sentencing.