AKIPRESS.COM - A federal jury on Tuesday convicted Robel Phillipos, a friend of the Boston Marathon bombing suspect, of two counts of lying to federal agents, ending deliberations that lasted some 35 hours over six days, the Boston Globe reports.

Phillipos now becomes the third of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s college friends convicted of crimes related to the removal of an incriminating backpack from Tsarnaev’s dorm room days after the deadly explosions.

The three cases are a prelude to the long-awaited trial of Tsarnaev, which is scheduled to start in January. Tsarnaev, who faces the possibility of the death penalty if convicted, is accused, along with his older brother, of killing three and injuring 260 others by setting off two homemade bombs at the Marathon finish line on April 15, 2013.

Phillipos, 21, was stoic as the jury rendered the guilty verdict. The former University of Massachusetts Dartmouth student now faces a maximum of eight years on each count, though legal specialists say he is likely to receive much less. His lawyers say they plan to appeal the verdict.

At a news conference Tuesday, US Attorney Carmen Ortiz said the conviction sends an important message about a singular tragedy for the city.