VALDOSTA – A grand jury has indicted a former Valdosta State Prison inmate for allegedly strangling his cellmate to death.

Chris Lashan Harper, 45, was indicted Monday by a Superior Court of Lowndes County Grand Jury. Harper has been charged with malice murder, felony murder and aggravated assault, according to court documents.

Harper is accused of murdering his cellmate, Robery Lee Hughes, Jr., 26, on December 9, 2016.

“Harper is accused of strangling his cellmate with his hands, causing his death,” said Brad Shealy, Southern Judicial Circuit District Attorney.

Harper has been in and out of prison since 1989, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections, and is currently serving a sentence for robbery and aggravated assault, said Shealy.

Harper is currently incarcerated at the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison in Butts County, according to GDOC.