PADUCAH, Ky. (WKRN) — A federal jury at the U.S. District Court in Paducah has convicted a Clarksville man in the 2018 shooting death of his estranged wife at the Fort Campbell military installation.

The jury found 33-year-old Victor E. Silvers guilty of multiple charges related to the murder of Brittney Niecol Silvers, a U.S. Army soldier assigned to Fort Campbell, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky announced in a Thursday news release.

Those charges include first-degree murder, attempted murder, domestic violence resulting in death, violation of a protective order resulting in death, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and two counts of discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. 

According to court documents and evidence presented at the trial, Victor drove from Clarksville to his wife’s apartment at Fort Campbell on Oct. 14, 2018. The two were separated and going through the process of getting a divorce.

Another man, James Keating, who was visiting Brittney, heard banging at the apartment door.

She went to the door and stepped outside. In a federal search warrant, investigators said Keating heard them arguing followed by multiple gunshots. Brittney was shot three times and died from her injuries, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Victor then confronted Keating inside the apartment. They struggled for the gun, and Keating was shot in the leg but managed to get control of the firearm. Victor ran to his car, but neighbors stopped him from leaving until a military police officer showed up.

Victor initially denied shooting his wife but later confessed, according to investigators.

Brittney had been granted a Domestic Violence Order of Protection only five days before her murder, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The order prohibited her husband from being within 300 feet of her or committing violent acts against her.

Victor was also prohibited from possessing a firearm because of the Domestic Violence Order of Protection entered against him. Sentencing for Victor is scheduled for Feb. 22, 2023, before a U.S. District Court Judge for the Western District of Kentucky.

Victor remains in custody pending sentencing. He faces a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system.

Brittney was an automated logistical specialist in the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). She was posthumously promoted to sergeant and received the Army Commendation Medal.  

“101st Combat Aviation Brigade has lost an incredibly valued member of the Destiny team,” Lt. Col. Cayton Johnson, commander of the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade (Rear), 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), told News 2 in 2018.